Tipra Motha Party sweeps polls, retains key Tripura tribal council with stronger mandate

In a decisive victory in the politically significant elections to the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC), the Tipra Motha Party (TMP), an ally of the ruling BJP, has retained control of the state’s second most important constitutional body after the Assembly.

The 30-member TTAADC comprises 28 elected representatives and two members nominated by the state government, and it administers nearly 70 per cent of Tripura’s 10,491 sq km geographical area.

The tribal-based TMP, headed by Pradyot Kishore Debbarma, secured 24 seats, six more than in the previous elections.

Chairman and Chief Executive Member (CEM) of the outgoing TTAADC, Jagadhish Debbarma, and Purna Chandra Jamatia, both senior TMP leaders, respectively, have both been re-elected.

The BJP, however, managed to win only four seats this time, a sharp decline from the 10 seats it secured in the 2021 TTAADC elections.

The CPI (M)-led Left Front and the Congress party, as in the 2021 polls, once again failed to open their accounts. In the 2021 TTAADC elections, the BJP had contested 11 seats and won nine, while a BJP-backed Independent candidate also emerged victorious and later joined the TMP. The TMP had then won 18 seats, wresting control of the council from the CPI (M)-led Left Front after several years.

Political observers noted that with two consecutive victories in the TTAADC, the TMP has further consolidated its position in Tripura’s political landscape.

Formed in 1985 under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution, the TTAADC exercises limited authority over around 68 per cent of the state’s geographical area. Despite these constraints, it remains a strategically crucial constitutional body, second only to the state Assembly in political importance.

Amid stringent three-tier security arrangements, counting of votes for the crucial TTAADC elections was held on Friday across all eight districts of the state.

A State Election Commission (SEC) official said that prohibitory orders under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, have been imposed in and around counting centres to maintain law and order.

With the deployment of both central and state security forces, elaborate security arrangements have been ensured at all 17 counting centres across the state, the official added.

The electoral contest in the tribal council polls featured three national parties -- the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the opposition CPI(M)-led Left Front, and the Congress -- along with two prominent regional parties, the Tipra Motha Party (TMP) and the Indigenous People’s Front of Tripura (IPFT).

Several smaller parties and Independent candidates were also in the fray.

According to SEC officials, the BJP, TMP, and the Left Front fielded candidates in all 28 constituencies. The Congress contested 27 seats, while the IPFT nominated candidates in 24 constituencies. In addition, 38 Independent candidates, along with nominees from smaller parties, contested the elections.

The BJP and its two tribal-based allies -- TMP and IPFT -- had contested the April 12 elections separately after failing to reach an electoral understanding for the TTAADC polls.

Since 2021, the TMP has governed the strategically important council, which is widely regarded as the second most significant constitutional and political institution in Tripura after the state Assembly.

The TTAADC was constituted in June 1985 under the Sixth Schedule of the Indian Constitution to promote the socio-economic development of tribal communities, which continue to play a vital role in the state’s political dynamics.

Tribal communities account for nearly one-third of Tripura’s 4.2 million population and remain a decisive factor in the state’s politics. More than 83.52 per cent of the 9,62,697 eligible voters exercised their franchise in the April 12 elections to determine the fate of 173 candidates, including eight women.