Tripura BJP office set ablaze; Cabinet Minister accuses Tipra Motha, vows action

Agartala, Sept 25: Tripura Tribal Welfare Minister Bikash Debbarma accused Tipra Motha supporters of setting a BJP office ablaze, and said no one can weaken the saffron party in the northeastern state by carrying out such attacks.

He also warned those who had torched the BJP office at Mandwai on Tuesday night of dire consequences. According to reports, the office was allegedly torched by miscreants on the night Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Tripura. 

"A group of Tipra Motha Party supporters set ablaze the BJP party office at Mandwai by pouring in petrol. Those involved in the incident will face consequences. No one can weaken the BJP by carrying out such attacks on the party offices and party workers," Debbarma claimed.

Tipra Motha is a constituent of the BJP-led coalition government in Tripura.

The minister said furniture, party flags and cutouts of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Manik Saha were gutted in the fire.

Debbarma, who visited the fire-ravaged BJP office at Mandwai in West Tripura district on Wednesday, said a complaint has been lodged at the local police station, and the party sought the immediate arrest of those involved in the incident.

"The people who set the party office on fire will be arrested. The police will act as per the law. Those who are trying to create unrest in the state will not be spared," he said.

Chief Minister Manik Saha had recently slammed the Tipra Motha Party (TMP) for attacking BJP workers and journalists at Hezamara in West Tripura.

The development comes at a time when ties between the Tipra Motha and BJP are visibly strained.

Earlier, tensions flared after the BJP-led coalition partner criticised the state government for not extending an invitation to the Tripureshwari Temple inauguration during the Prime Minister’s recent visit.

On September 23, in a rare display of unity within the Tripura Assembly, a ruling BJP ally and the Opposition jointly lambasted the state government over the issue in the Assembly.

Meanwhile, the delay in addressing Tipra Motha’s demand for a Greater Tipraland has further deepened the rift between the BJP and its coalition partner.

With inputs from PTI