Two arrested for attack on Tripura on vehicle of IGP during VC vote counting

Two accused involved in the attack on the official vehicle of IGP (Law and Order) , police on Wednesday have arrested two, while he was returning from the Kathalia vote counting centre during the TTAADC Village Committee election counting.

Officer-in-Charge (OC) of the Jatrapur police station of Sepahijala district, Parthanath Bhowmik, said a joint team of Jatrapur Police and the Tripura State Rifles (TSR) conducted late-night raids on Tuesday and apprehended the two accused from their residences for their direct involvement in connection with the attack on the official vehicle of Tripura Inspector General of Police (Law and Order), Ipper Manchak.

The operation was led by the OC along with Sonamura Sub-Divisional Police Officer (SDPO) Abhijit Das.

Police said case has also been registered against several other persons in connection with the incident, and efforts are underway to arrest the remaining accused at the earliest. According to the police, the same group of miscreants had also attacked a bus carrying election counting personnel earlier that day.

The two arrested have been identified as Pintu Tripura (25), alias Guddu, and Haricharan Tripura (39), both described by police as supporters of Tipra Motha Party (TMP). Pintu is a resident of Kalikhola, while Haricharan hails from Ledrabari.

The accused were produced before the Sonamura court on Wednesday, which remanded them to judicial custody until October 15.

According to police, the incidents occurred on October 5, when vote counting for the TTAADC Village Committees in Kathalia Block was conducted amid widespread violence, unrest and disorder allegedly involving Tipra Motha supporters.

Earlier in the day, a bus carrying counting personnel was attacked while travelling from Kathalia to the counting centre at Thalibari. A passenger auto-rickshaw was also vandalized. Later in the afternoon, while returning from the Thalibari counting centre, the official vehicle of IGP (Law and Order) Ipper Manchak came under attack. The assailants allegedly used sticks and bricks to damage the vehicle.

Police have not disclosed the total number of people named in the cases registered in connection with the incidents. However, sources said Jatrapur police are under considerable pressure to apprehend all those involved in the attack on the IGP's vehicle. While two suspects have already been arrested, the arrest of the remaining accused is still awaited.