6 min readAgartalaFeb 10, 2023 02:11 AM IST
First published on: Feb 9, 2023 at 07:32 PM IST
WITH THE tribal vote crucial in the coming keenly fought Assembly elections in Tripura, the BJP Thursday released a tribal-centric manifesto, with assurances regarding the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC). Its promise of a “historic permanent solution in a time-bound manner” to the demand for a tribal state, mirrors what the TIPRA Motha has called for.
The BJP’s Sankalp Patra, released with a week to go for the elections, has 24 major promises, apart from a slew of other assurances. It calls for “23-e abar, BJP Sarkar (BJP government again in 2023)”, and holds out a DTH model, that is “development, transformation, harmony”.
With 20 Scheduled Tribe reserved seats in an Assembly of 60, the tribal vote is expected to be the biggest deciding factor in the coming polls. The TIPRA Motha, which had swept the TTAADC polls in 2021 within two months of its formation and is drawing huge crowds in tribal areas, was the first port of stop for the BJP in its bid for tribal votes. Having failed there, it has now managed to repair ties with its estranged tribal ally, Indigenous People’s Front of Tripura (IPFT), and is clearly hoping that the manifesto will further bridge the gap.
The biggest point in the manifesto is a promise to restructure the TTTAADC to provide it “greater autonomy” and additional legislative, executive, administrative, and financial powers within the framework of the 125th Constitution Amendment Bill. The legislation has provisions for greater autonomy for the ADC, and the BJP has promised anti-defection law in the tribal council as well as budgetary and time-bound allocations proportionate to its population.
Where the TIPRA Motha has called for a “permanent Constitutional solution” to its demand for a Greater Tipraland, the BJP has vowed to achieve “historic permanent solution in a time-bound manner” by taking the needed constitutional, legal, executive and administrative measures. However, it has underlined, this would be “without affecting the territorial integrity of Tripura”.
The BJP has also promised that a government ruled by it would authorise the ADC to send proposals regarding centrally sponsored schemes directly to the Centre; and promises to consult the tribal council on introduction of the indigenous Kokborok language for CBSE, ICSE and competitive examinations.
Other promises include: posting senior police officials in the TTAADC to ensure better law and order; working with the Centre to get the ADC courts for tribals to protect and preserve their customary laws and practices; setting up TTAADC bhavans in major cities of the country; providing financial assistance of Rs 5,000 per tribal family annually; setting up Eklavya Model Residential Schools in every block within the TTAADC; and setting up a Maharaja Bir Bikram Tribal University for tribal culture and studies.
While the TIPRA Motha initially talked of Greater Tipraland as a separate state for tribals, it recently clarified that it meant a state inside a state as per Article 244 A of the Constitution (covering autonomous areas).
Apart from tribals, the other focus of the BJP manifesto is women, with promises such as a Rs 50,000 bond to each family belonging to financially weaker sections on the birth of a girl child; Scooties for meritorious college-going female students; periodic financial assistance of Rs 25,000 to female students from financially weaker sections; free bicycles to girls who pass Class V; and the state’s first all-woman police battalion.
For youths, the BJP promised self-employment in tourism, logistics, industries, Self Help Groups over the next five years; institutes such as a Regional Institute of Medical Science at Agartala, the Indian Institute of Spices Research (IISR), IIT etc.
For farmers, the manifesto promises a Bhumiheen Kisan Vikas Yojana of Rs 3,000 annual assistance to all landless farmers, increased paddy procurement, modernisation of agarbatti industry, setting up of an Indian Institute of Bamboo Technology, and Rs 6,000 annual financial assistance to fishermen.
The BJP manifesto also promises a pilgrimage scheme for senior citizens, and cheap and subsidised cooked food thrice a day at Rs 5 per meal in Anukulchandra Canteens.
Anukulchandra is a Hindu religious sect leader whose Satsang Ashram has a significant following in Tripura and other parts of Eastern India. The BJP-led state government earlier introduced a Deoghar Express connecting Agartala to Deoghar in Jharkhand, which has an Anukulchandra shrine.
Launching the Sankalp Patra, BJP president J P Nadda said while other parties’ manifestos or vision papers are not taken seriously by their own supporters, for the BJP the Vision Document is a symbol of the party’s commitment towards the people.
“Jo kaha tha, wo kiya hai (What we said, we did),” Nadda said, adding that the BJP had fulfilled all its poll promises of 2018, including housing, safe drinking water, waiver of fees for girl students etc. “Jo nahin kaha tha, woh bhi kar ke diya hai (What we didn’t say, we have done that too)”, he added, talking of reservation of 50% market stalls for women, pattas to forest dwellers, settlement of 37,000 Bru migrant families from Mizoram; and the rise in Tripura per capita income to Rs 1.58 lakh.
BJP National President JP Nadda with Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha waves at supporters during an election campaign meeting for the Tripura Legislative Assembly elections, in Agartala, Thursday, Feb. 9, 2023. (PTI) 
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