Eighth MLA leaves Tripura BJP-led coalition, seen with ‘good friends’ in Congress

A month ago, former minister Mevar Kumar Jamatia, belonging to BJP ally Indigenous People’s Front of Tripura (IPFT), had quit, citing poor performance of the BJP-IPFT government. Of the eight MLAs of the coalition to quit in the past two years now, as many as five belonged to the BJP.

Senior Congress leader and ex-MLA Ashish Saha, Congress youth leader Baptu Chakraborty and party spokesperson Prashanta Bhattacharya accompanied Hrangkhawl as he went to submit his resignation.

Asked if he would be returning to the Congress, Hrangkhawl said: “You will know when I take the decision. But that’s not for today.” He added that the Congress leaders who came along with him Wednesday were all “good friends”, and that he had similar ties with people in the BJP and CPI(M) as well. “They could not come today along with me, but we are always in discussion with them,” Hrangkhawl said.

He also refused to talk about the performance of the BJP-IPFT government, saying, “I will not deliberate today on ideology.”

The speculation regarding Hrangkhawl’s possible return to the Congress is also fuelled by the fact that he is seen as close to former minister and senior leader Sudip Roy Barman, who earlier left the BJP to return to the Congress. Hrangkhawl was with Barman in criticism of the functioning of former BJP chief minister Biplab Kumar Deb, and had accompanied Barman on a Delhi trip that was seen as a pressure tactic for Deb’s removal.

Hrangkhawl had, however, been keeping a low profile since Deb was summarily removed as CM earlier this year.

Reacting to his departure, BJP state chief spokesperson Subrata Chakraborty said Hrangkhawl had been ailing and could have quit due to it. “His resignation will not affect our party’s prospects. The BJP is not dependent on any individual”, he said.

IPFT MLA from Simna Briswaketu Debbarma was the first of the ruling coalition legislators to resign from the House. He quit last year, and joined the IPFT’s rival tribal party, TIPRA Motha. BJP Surma MLA Asish Das became the second MLA to quit. He joined the Trinamool Congress, but quit it too and moved to Union minister Ramdas Athawale’s RPI, which has barely a presence in Tripura.

The next to exit was Sudip Roy Barman, the BJP MLA from Agartala, who left along with Bardowali MLA Asish Kumar Saha. Both joined the Congress later, and Barman contested a by-election to be re-elected from his home turf. Saha, however, lost to Chief Minister Manik Saha, who was seeking election from Bardowali.

Tribal BJP MLA Burbumohan Tripura, who was elected from Karbook constituency, resigned in September, and joined the TIPRA Motha.

Then came the resignations of IPFT MLAs Dhananjoy Tripura (Raimavalley constituency), and Mevar Kumar Jamatia (Ramchandraghat). The two also headed for the TIPRA Motha.