Tripura High Court seeks reply from state government over post-poll violence

According to the statement of opposition CPI(M), around 1500 incidents of violence mostly on the opposition party supporters and workers were reported across Tripura from February 16 last with the conclusion of vote casting, which has increased manifolds after the announcement of results on March 2 and still continues.

A large number of opposition supporters were injured in the attacks while a few cadres of the ruling BJP have also got hurt in the counter-attacks and resistance.

Hundreds of houses, shops, orchards, cattle and poultry firms, and other livelihood options were set on fire or destroyed otherwise.

Allegedly, in most of the cases, police didn’t register cases and did not take any action and most of the victims are still out of their homes following continuous threats and intimidations.

The senior lawyer and an independent candidate in the assembly poll from Ramnagar constituency of the city Purushottam Roy Barman on March 9 last sought attention regarding the post-election violence in the division bench headed by Chief Justice T Amarnath Goud and appealed to the court to take up the public interest case on its own accord.

The bench asked him to submit detailed information on post-election violence and terrorism to the Registrar General. Accordingly, Roy Barman had filed detailed information and evidence of 1000 incidents of violence in the High Court including the media reports, video footage, copies of a few FIRs, and pictures of the attacks based on which the high court accepted the PIL and served notice to the state.

"The court directed the state government to ensure that no further incidents of violence and terrorism should take place in the state and to submit a detailed report describing what steps have been taken against such violence and attacks," Roy Barman said adding that state government should ensure recovery of compensation from the accused persons under the provision of Tripura Recovery of Damages to Public and Private Property Act 2021.

Tripura government has passed an act to deal with acts of violence in public places and recover the loss of damages of properties from the perpetrators.

Under the Act provision of recovery of damages during hartal, bandh, riots, public commotion, and protest would be done in awarding compensation to the victim.

The liability of damage will be borne by the actual perpetrators of the crime or instigated or incited giving rise to the liability to be shared.