Tripura Allies BJP And Tipra Motha Workers Clash During Mann Ki Baat Broadcast
In a major political development in Tripura, members of the BJP and its key ally Tipra Motha clashed on Sunday at an area where BJP supporters claimed to have assembled to listen to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's monthly radio broadcast Mann Ki Baat.
The police said they have filed a case following the clash that broke out in Khowai district.
Political analysts said the incident indicated the growing strain in the relationship between the two allies in Tripura.
"I have no idea, but local people know who attacked first. They know the culprits as well, so they filed a police case. The police will take strong action and arrest the suspects," Triprua Chief Minister Manik Saha told reporters.
According to police sources, some 30 BJP functionaries and their supporters were assembled at a house in the district's Asharambari assembly constituency to listen to Mann Ki Baat.
A large group of Tipra Motha workers and supporters also reached the place. The clash broke out after that. The immediate cause is not known.
Tipra Motha founder Pradyot Manikya Debburman in a recorded video posted on social media confirmed the clash happened.
"We don't want any political violence in Tripura. If we the Tiprasa still keep fighting for the sake of a political flag, one day we will be left with no land. The BJP should also be careful. Many CPI(M) supporters are either in BJP or Motha and indulging in all these," he said.
Eight motorcycles and two cars were damaged in the clash. A large number of police personnel have been posted in the area. Tension is still high, sources said.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Mint
18 minutes ago
- Mint
NDA authorises PM Narendra Modi, BJP chief JP Nadda to pick V-P candidate ahead of 9 September polls
The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) has authorised Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president JP Nadda to pick the alliance's Vice President candidate. The decision was taken during the NDA leaders meeting held in the state capital on Thursday, news agencies reported. Earlier in the day, the Election Commission of India issued a notification for the 9 September election to the vice president's post, kickstarting the nomination process. With the Election Commissionnotification, nominations for vice presidential elections begin. The date for filing nominations is 21 August. The nominations will be scrutinised on 22 August, and the last date for withdrawing nominations will be 25 August, as per the schedule issued by the Election Commission. The notification by the Election Commission comes after Jagdeep Dhankhar resigned as Vice President on 21 July, opening the contest for his successor. Dhankhar, 74, assumed office in August 2022, and his tenure was till 2027. As per Article 66(1) of the Constitution, the Vice President of India is elected by an Electoral College comprising the elected members of the Rajya Sabha, the nominated members of the Rajya Sabha, and the elected members of the Lok Sabha. According to Articles 63 to 71 of the Constitution and the Vice President (Election) Rules, 1974, the Election Commission had to hold a formal election within 60 days of Dhankhar's resignation and before 19 September 2025. The electorate or the electoral college comprises all members of both Houses of Parliament—elected and nominated—using a proportional representation system via a single transferable vote. The MPs will cast a single transferable vote with a secret ballot. The electoral college currently has 788 MPs, 588 in Lok Sabha and 245 in Rajya Sabha. The ruling BJP-led National Democratic Alliance(NDA) has a majority in the electorate, which includes the members of the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha. Both the NDA and the opposition INDIA bloc are expected to nominate candidates.
&w=3840&q=100)
Business Standard
24 minutes ago
- Business Standard
'Elections are choreographed': Rahul Gandhi's big claim against EC, BJP
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday alleged that the Election Commission is working with the BJP to manipulate election results. Presenting data from the 2024 Lok Sabha elections in Karnataka, Gandhi claimed that "vote chori" (vote theft) had taken place on a large scale, calling it a "crime against the Constitution". During a media address at the AICC headquarters in New Delhi, Gandhi said the Congress had set up a team to investigate suspected irregularities and gathered 'concrete evidence of vote chori' over six months. He demanded access to machine-readable voter data from the past 10-15 years and CCTV footage from polling stations. "If the EC does not give us machine-readable data for the past 10-15 years and the CCTV footage, they are partaking in the crime," Rahul Gandhi said. Focus on Mahadevapura: Allegations of 100,000 fake votes Rahul Gandhi presented an analysis of voter data from the Bangalore Central Lok Sabha constituency, particularly the Mahadevapura Assembly segment. According to Gandhi, in the Lok Sabha constituency of Bangalore Central, the Congress polled 626,208 votes while BJP got 658,915 votes — a winning margin of 32,707 for the BJP. Despite Congress winning six out of seven Assembly segments in the constituency, Gandhi further pointed to a massive lead of over 114,000 votes for the BJP in Mahadevapura. This, he claimed, turned the seat in BJP's favour. 'Elections are being choreographed': Rahul Gandhi The Congress MP described the entire electoral process as being "staged". "Elections are choreographed... Our internal polling told us we would win 16 seats in Karnataka; we won nine," he said. The Congress focused on seven unexpected losses and zeroed in on Mahadevapura for a detailed analysis, he said. "We found 100,250 votes stolen. Stolen in five different ways. Duplicate voters, fake and invalid addresses, and bulk voters in a single address, on a building with 50-60 people living. But when we go there, there is no record of those people living there. One family living in that house," he added. Rahul Gandhi pointed to invalid photos and misuse of Form 6, which allows new voter registration, as methods used for vote tampering. He alleged that 100,250 votes were fraudulent, citing: • 11,965 duplicate voters • 40,009 voters with fake or invalid addresses • 10,452 bulk voters listed under single addresses • 4,132 voters with invalid photos • 33,692 voters registered using misused Form 6 for new voter applications Concerns over polling schedule and voter turnout Rahul Gandhi raised concerns about how elections are now held in multiple phases, unlike earlier when they were completed in a single day. "There was a time in India with no EVMs; people voted on one day. Now, UP has a different voting day, and Bihar has some other day. Voting goes on for a month. This made us suspicious," he said. He also flagged sudden changes in polling dates for Karnataka and Haryana as suspicious. Referring to the Maharashtra Assembly elections, Gandhi said the number of voters added to the rolls in five months exceeded those added in the last five years. "In Maharashtra and Haryana, we saw it right in front of our faces. We said publicly and told EC, more voters were added in five months than in five years in Maharashtra. More voters than the entire population of Maharashtra. Huge jump in voter turnout after 5 pm," he alleged. The Congress MP claimed there was a discrepancy between Lok Sabha and Assembly results, with 10 million new voters added at the state level, which altered the outcome. (With agency inputs)
Hindustan Times
24 minutes ago
- Hindustan Times
TMC's Abhishek Banerjee slams EC; alleges bias, voter suppression in West Bengal
TMC leader in Lok Sabha, Abhishek Banerjee, on Thursday launched a blistering attack on the Election Commission, accusing it of compromising its constitutional neutrality and playing a "shameless role" in trying to disenfranchise genuine voters in West Bengal. Trinamool Congress General Secretary Abhishek Banerjee accused the BJP of using the EC, judiciary, and media to malign Bengal. (ANI) Speaking to reporters before leaving for Delhi to attend a dinner at Congress MP Rahul Gandhi's residence, where opposition leaders are expected to discuss the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls and deliberate on a joint vice-presidential candidate, Banerjee alleged that the poll body had overstepped its constitutional boundaries to give political advantage to the BJP. "The EC must understand and realise that it is an impartial and unbiased organisation and it has to operate within the ambit of the Constitution," Banerjee said. Alleging that the EC has become a tool in the hands of the BJP, Banerjee said, "Now the EC has taken a shameless role to snatch the voting rights of genuine voters. They are going overboard. The work they have started over the past 3-4 months, when the Bengal election is still 10-11 months away, clearly shows that they are not going to let an elected government function." He claimed that the commission was "actively working" to deny Bengalis their franchise under the guise of voter list revision. "The EC is being used so that the genuine Bengalis of Bengal cannot exercise their voting rights," he said. Also Read: Abhishek Banerjee appointed TMC's leader of party in Lok Sabha, says Mamata Taking a dig at a recent controversy, Banerjee added, "Yesterday, I saw a report that a residential certificate had been issued under the name of Donald Trump in Bihar. You should ask the Election Commission about it instead of shooting questions at us." He continued, "You should ask the Chief Election Commissioner why Donald Trump has imposed a 50 per cent tariff on India. Or maybe, when Mr. Trump comes to cast his vote in Bihar elections, he will be in a suitable position to answer this question." The Diamond Harbour MP alleged that the commission's actions were aimed at tilting the field in favour of the BJP ahead of the 2026 Assembly polls in West Bengal. "The EC's responsibility begins only when the Model Code of Conduct is in place. After that, it can take over the state's civil and police administration to ensure a free and fair election. But what it is doing now, months ahead of the polls, shows it is working to benefit the BJP," Banerjee said. He further accused the commission of bypassing the elected state government, which he said was accountable only to the people of Bengal. "This government was voted to power in 2021 by 12 crore people of Bengal. It is committed and accountable to them, not to any political party or the Centre," Banerjee asserted. The TMC leader also accused the BJP of orchestrating a broader campaign to malign the state and its people by using the Election Commission, judiciary, and certain sections of the media. "They have denied Bengal its rights and misused the judiciary. They used a section of the media to defame Bengal by using a case like Sandeshkhali. Now they are using the EC so that genuine Bengalis cannot vote," Banerjee alleged. He also criticised the Union government for allegedly blocking funds under key welfare schemes. Also Read: Bengal: Abhishek to address 9,000 TMC workers as BJP begins 4-day strategy meet "The Centre has stopped even drinking water funds under the Jal Jeevan Mission. Water is life — yet they've blocked that too. This is not just about 100-day wages, housing, or GST dues anymore," Banerjee alleged. He also claimed that since the TMC returned to power in 2021, over 50 CBI probes have been initiated by various benches of the Calcutta High Court. "This is being done under Central pressure to harass the government and weaken the TMC," he said. Referring to last year's controversy at RG Kar Medical College, Banerjee said, "Despite the smear campaign, Kolkata Police solved the matter in 24 hours. The CBI has done nothing even after a year." He warned that those attempting to malign Bengal for political gains would be defeated again. "They were taught a lesson in 2021 and 2024. They will be taught another in the coming days," he said.
