Tripura ruling ally IPFT demands increase in Cabinet berths to 12

Agartala: The Indigenous People’s Front of Tripura (IPFT) has demanded its ruling ally, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), in the state coalition government to increase its number of ministers in the Tripura Cabinet on Wednesday.

Speaking with the reporters recently, party president and state revenue minister, Narendra Chandra Debbarma, said that the present Cabinet of Tripura government has eight ministers whereas the total strength was 12 during the formation of the government.

Nine cabinet ministers had taken oath on March 8 last year, but one of the ministers was dropped earlier this year.

“According to the understanding between the IPFT and BJP party, it was decided that of the total strength of 12 cabinet ministers, three Cabinet ministers would be from IPFT party and the rest nine from BJP. We have placed the demand to the BJP working president JP Nadda to do the needful so that the Cabinet is reshuffled and the number of Cabinet ministers from our is increased,” Debbarma said, adding: “We placed a charter of demands to JP Nadda on September 10, asking them to keep their promises, which were made prior to the 2018 general assembly elections.”

According to a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between BJP-IPFT, it was decided if the government is formed, then the responsibility of the Autonomous District Council (ADC) would be given to us and only IPFT would contest in the ADC elections. “We have asked the BJP high command to keep the promises which they had made to us and not contest in the ADC elections against us,” he added.

“We have also placed the demand for the immediate release of the High Modality Committee Report which was supposed to be submitted within two months. The home minister had promised us to provide us the report of the committee but they are yet to do so. We demand the release of the report,” Debbarma said.

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The IPFT party would continue the demand for a separate Tipraland in the ADC areas and soon leave for New Delhi.

“A delegation consisting of representatives from all the wings of IPFT would leave for Delhi Abhiyaan in November, to place the demand of Tipraland and meet the higher authorities again,” Debbarma added.

Earlier in July, the party had written a letter to the Speaker of the Tripura Legislative Assembly demanding a separate block for the eight members of the party, which was later allocated during the three-day monsoon session of the assembly.

Of the total 60 seats, the ruling BJP-IPFT coalition government has got 36 seats, of which IPFT has eight, and the Opposition CPI-M has 16 seats in Tripura’s legislative assembly.