Union HM Amit Shah To Reach Tripura On Wednesday As BJP Preps For Assembly Polls

During the one-day visit, Shah will flag off two Rath Jatras of the BJP in the state. He is likely to travel first to North Tripura's Dharmanagar to flag off the first one.

Agartala: Union Home Minister Amit Shah is likely to arrive in Tripura on Wednesday night as the ruling BJP prepares for the assembly elections.

Shah was earlier scheduled to reach the state on Thursday, but his arrival was preponed, a senior official said.

"Shah will now reach the state around 10 pm on Wednesday by an Air Force plane," he said.

He will spend the night at the State Guest House amid tight security, the official said.

During the one-day visit, Shah will flag off two Rath Jatras of the BJP in the state. He is likely to travel first to North Tripura's Dharmanagar, around 190 km from state capital Agartala, to flag off the first one, party leaders said.

Later, he will be visiting South Tripura's Sabroom near the Bangladesh border to flag off the second Rath Jatra.

He is then scheduled to leave the state. However, the reason behind the rescheduling of his arrival was not immediately known.

Chief Minister Manik Saha accompanied by Information and Cultural Affairs Minister Sushanta Chowdhury visited Dharmanagar and Sabroom on Monday to check the preparations for the party's mega show ahead of the assembly elections, which would be due in February.

As a part of the two Rath Jatras, several public meetings and rallies have been planned, party leaders said.

BJP national president JP Nadda is scheduled to remain present on the concluding day of the programme on January 12. 

Senior BJP leader Biplab Deb on Monday claimed the people of Tripura wanted a change of the then Left Front government in the state in the 2003 and 2008 elections but leaders of the opposition Congress did not respect their aspirations.

Addressing a Bijoy Sankalpa rally in Unakoti district's Fatikroy area, he said the recent joint statement issued by the CPI(M) and the Congress calling for the defeat of the BJP in the 2023 elections revealed the closeness the two parties have shared over the years.

"The then opposition party (Congress) was friends with the ruling party (CPI(M)). Today their understanding has come to the fore as they issued a joint statement urging the people to restore democracy," said Deb, now a Rajya Sabha MP after quitting as the first BJP chief minister of the state.

BJP only had a 1.5 per cent vote share before the 2018 elections when it routed the CPI(M)-led Left Front government of 25 years, he said.

"Due to well-coordinated efforts of the party leaders, people blessed the BJP to form a government. History was created in Tripura," he said.

He urged party workers to reach out to CPI(M) supporters and make them aware of the work done by the BJP-led government in the state.

 

(This story is published as part of the auto-generated syndicate wire feed. Apart from the headline, no editing has been done in the copy by ABP Live.)