A politically charged atmosphere prevailed in Agartala on Saturday as the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) organized a massive ‘Save Democracy’ rally led by Chief Minister Prof. Dr Manik Saha, former Chief Minister and Lok Sabha MP Biplab Kumar Deb, BJP state president Abhishek Debroy, state cabinet ministers, MLAs, senior party leaders and thousands of supporters.
The rally commenced from in front of Rabindra Satabarshiki Bhavan and passed through several major roads of the city before culminating at Paradise Chowmuhani. Participants carried placards and raised slogans in support of democracy and the Constitution.
Addressing the gathering, Chief Minister Dr Manik Saha launched a sharp attack on the Congress-led INDIA bloc, accusing it of systematically targeting constitutional institutions, including the Election Commission (EC) and the Supreme Court, in an attempt to mislead the public.
"The INDIA bloc appears to be searching for alternative ways to capture power after repeatedly failing in electoral contests. They have become active in weakening constitutional institutions so that people lose trust in these bodies," Saha alleged.
The Chief Minister strongly defended the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, stating that the Supreme Court had recognized the Election Commission's authority to undertake the exercise to prepare error-free electoral rolls and ensure free and fair elections.
"Despite the Supreme Court's endorsement of the SIR process, the INDIA bloc refuses to accept it. They are attempting to create an anarchic situation similar to that witnessed in Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Nepal through protests and agitation. Such attempts will not succeed in the world's largest democracy," he asserted.
Reiterating the BJP's commitment to safeguarding democracy and the Constitution, Dr Saha said the party would continue reaching out to people to expose what he described as the INDIA bloc's attempts to weaken the country's democratic institutions.
Former Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb also criticized the opposition alliance, questioning its political stand and urging BJP workers and supporters to remain united in protecting democratic values.
BJP state president Abhishek Debroy also targeted the INDIA bloc over its opposition to the SIR exercise. He claimed that the revision of electoral rolls had been conducted on ten occasions during the Congress regime to eliminate errors and questioned why the opposition was now demanding that the process be halted.
"Does the INDIA bloc want the names of deceased and shifted voters to remain on the electoral rolls for electoral gains? They are targeting Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar merely for carrying out the SIR to make the electoral rolls clean and error-free," Debroy said.
Taking a swipe at the opposition's 'Save Democracy' rally held on Friday, Debroy claimed that the BJP remained politically secure in Tripura and asserted that the party would continue to enjoy public support despite the Congress and CPI(M) joining hands against it.
The BJP said the rally was part of its broader campaign to highlight its commitment to protecting democracy and constitutional values, while accusing the INDIA bloc of attempting to erode public confidence in key democratic institutions.