When Pradyot Debbarma stepped down as TIPRA Motha chief last month, questions arose if his party’s core demand for an autonomous Greater Tipraland would go on the back burner. On Sunday, Pradyot threw a curveball. In a voice message shared across social media, he urged Tipra workers to stay united for two months and claimed he was hopeful of “something good” for tribals in the state emerging in this time. “They (enemies) will unite and try to break our unity. If we fight amongst ourselves, we shall not get anything. Stay united as friends and brothers for Tiprasa for the next two months. Those who do not want us to get a constitutional solution as Greater Tipraland or Tipraland, they will do everything to make tribals, brothers, friends, Indigenous People’s Front of Tripura (IPFT) and TIPRA Motha fight each other. The government of India will give Tripura tribals something very good and very big this time.” These remarks assume significance since they came days after a TIPRA Motha delegation met the Union Ministry of Home Affairs’ Northeast advisor A K Mishra to discuss its demands, including the creation of Greater Tipraland, a state for tribals. About the meeting in Delhi on July 28, Pradyot said, “Our Delhi meeting has gone well, it has gone better than expected. We and IPFT have kept our demands and we have not compromised … I feel this was the best meeting held till date. Two meetings may be held after this.” The TIPRA Motha is going through an internal churn at present, as illustrated by Pradyot’s resignation at the party plenary last month. Sources in the party said the decision to quit was an “emotional” one as he did not find enough support within the party. Pradyot founded the TIPRA Motha in 2021 with the Greater Tipraland demand, claiming that tribals had been “ignored and left underdeveloped” under various governments led by the Congress, the CPI(M), and the BJP. TIPRA Motha’s core demand underwent some change ahead of the Assembly polls this February, with the party saying that Greater Tipraland would mean an autonomous state within Tripura as per the Constitution. It emerged as the primary Opposition party in the state after the elections, winning 13 seats. In March, the Central government promised an interlocutor to study the problems faced by tribals of the state and look for a “constitutional solution”. This was after Pradyot held talks with Home Minister Amit Shah. But an interlocutor has not yet been appointed.
