Tripura District Council Polls : After CPM, TIPRA Motha wants re-polls
After Opposition Party CPM, another opposition party TIPRA Motha demanded re-polls at several booths for violence and alleged rigging during the Tripura Tribal Area Autonomous District Council (TTAADC) polls held on Tuesday (April 6).
Immediately after the Polls were over, CPM leaders demanded re-polls in 65 booths where alleged intimidation and manipulations took place.
A day later, on Wednesday, TIPRA Motha chairman Pradyot Kishore Debbarman also demanded fresh polls in altogether 70 polling booths located in the sensitive locations of the TTAADC areas, explicitly, where the violent activities like booth capturing, manipulation and ransacking of polling stations had been reported. “We will report to the State Election Commission regarding our concerns. We want fresh polls in places where the poll process has been tried to be manipulated”, said Debbarman while addressing a press conference at Ujjayanta palace in Agartala today.
Briefing the media persons, he said, “This is perhaps the highest turn out reported in elections across the country. I want to appreciate each and everyone who have exercised their democratic rights despite being threatened. We are confident of the majority and people will see our flags being hoisted high on the day of counting. We have not called a press conference on Tuesday since polls continued till late night and we wanted to brief the press after having all the facts and figures right”.
He, however, admitted that incidents of unprovoked violence had taken place, mostly, sparked by the outsiders from general areas and urged for peace.
“In areas like Pekuarjala, Takarjala, Amtali-Golaghati and Natunbazar-Malbasha people had been attacked, prevented from going to the polling station, in some places threats were given. After analyzing all the data we had listed out 60 to 70 polling booths where re-polls were required. We would meet the state election commissioner and seek fresh polls in these polling booths so that people could repose their hopes upon the election process”, said Debbarman.
To a question regarding the security arrangements, he said, it does not matter how many police personnel are posted at a polling booth, how they have responded during the crisis makes all the difference. At this front, police have failed to ensure the security, he added.
Debbarman also urged people and other political parties to keep peace on the counting day