Tipra-Motha threatens to block reopening of B’desh Mission in Agartala over minority attacks 

A day after the Bangladesh Assistant High Commission (AHC) in Agartala announced the indefinite suspension of visa and consular services, the Tipra Motha Party (TMP), an ally of the ruling BJP in Tripura, on Tuesday warned that it would not allow the reopening of the diplomatic mission until attacks and atrocities against minorities in Bangladesh are stopped.

In a notification issued, the First Secretary and Head of Commission of the Bangladesh AHC in Agartala, S. M. Almas Hossain, said that “due to unavoidable circumstances, all visa and consular services at the Bangladesh Assistant High Commission in Agartala will remain closed from December 23 until further notice.”

However, the Bangladesh Assistant High Commission in Guwahati, which has jurisdiction over Assam, Meghalaya, Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh, continues to function normally.

TMP supremo Pradyot Kishore Debbarma, in a video message on Tuesday, said that his party would not allow the reopening of the AHC in Agartala unless attacks and atrocities against minorities in Bangladesh are halted.

He also said that activists of various organisations have staged protests in front of the Indian High Commission in Bangladesh.

In a post on X, Debbarma claimed credit for the shutdown of operations at the Agartala mission, stating: “Our protest in front of the high commission and ultimatum has finally paid off. Bangladesh High Commission has shut down its operation in Agartala. What should have been done by others has been done by the Tipra Motha Party and YTF.”

Several organizations and political parties in Tripura have condemned the alleged lynching of a Hindu man, Dipu Das, a garment factory worker, in Mymensingh, Bangladesh, accusing the interim government there of failing to curb atrocities against religious minorities.

The youth wing of the TMP had last week staged protest demonstrations near the Bangladesh AHC in Agartala, condemning alleged remarks by leaders of the neighbouring country concerning India’s Northeastern region.

Youth Tipra Federation (YTF) President Suraj Debbarma, who led the protests on December 19, alleged that National Citizen Party (NCP) leader Hasnat Abdullah, Bangladesh interim government’s Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus and other leaders have been making “baseless and anti-India” statements and encouraging hostile activities against India.

He further claimed that protests have been held in front of the Indian High Commission in Dhaka and elsewhere in Bangladesh, during which “anti-India” slogans were raised.

Suraj Debbarma alleged that Hasnat Abdullah had claimed that Bangladesh would capture India’s ‘Seven Sisters’ and the Siliguri Corridor.

The Siliguri Corridor, often referred to as the ‘Chicken’s Neck’, connects Northeast India with the rest of the country through West Bengal.

The seven Northeastern states -- Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland and Tripura – are collectively known as the “seven sisters”.

Suraj Debbarma said that some Bangladeshi leaders had forgotten India’s contribution and sacrifices during the 1971 Liberation War that led to the creation of Bangladesh.

He warned that if such statements continued, TMP supporters could raise historical issues, including claims related to areas such as Cox’s Bazar, while highlighting the presence of minorities in the Chittagong Hill Tracts.

Meanwhile, another senior TMP leader said that the erstwhile ‘Chakla Roshnabad’ was a zamindari of the former princely state of Tripura, which once included plain areas of the present-day Noakhali and Sylhet districts of Bangladesh.

A senior Tripura police official said that security in and around the Bangladesh Assistant High Commission in Agartala has been further strengthened since August last year.

“A huge contingent of the CRPF and Tripura State Rifles has been deployed to provide security to the officials and the diplomatic mission,” the official added.