Former Leader of the Opposition and CPIM Politburo Member, Manik Sarkar, accused both the BJP and the Congress party of betraying the tribal community in Tripura. He asserted that it was the previous Left Front government that had vigorously advocated for the establishment of an autonomous district council to safeguard the rights of the tribal people in the state.
Speaking at a day-long convention titled “Unite All Democratic Forces to Defend the Rights,” jointly organized by GMP, TYF, and TSU at Agartala Town Hall, Manik Sarkar expressed concern about attempts to distort Tripura’s history. He emphasized that the Left Front government had consistently fought for the rights of tribals, including the preservation of their traditions, culture, and the enactment of the Forest Rights Act.
Accusing the Congress party of betraying the tribal population, Sarkar pointed out that they were obstructing the formation of the TTAADC (Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council). He also criticized former Chief Minister Sachindra Lal Singha, stating that he had refused to include the Kok-Borok language in school studies despite demands from the students’ federation of CPIM.
Manik Sarkar lauded the Left Front government for recognizing Kok-Borok as the state language and for their efforts in securing forest rights for the tribals. He credited the GMP for playing a crucial role in intensifying the tribal movement for forest rights during the Congress regime.
Turning his attention to the ruling BJP government at the Centre, Sarkar expressed concern over the new forest bill, claiming that it could jeopardize tribal land rights by transferring control to “crony capitalists.”
Regarding the recent state budget, Manik Sarkar criticized the BJP-led coalition government for doubling the state’s debt from Rs. 12,000 crore in 2018 to Rs. 24,000 crore in the last five years without noticeable development.
In addition to the budget, Sarkar also denounced Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his handling of the Manipur issue, stating that the Prime Minister was absent during the parliamentary discussion on the matter.
The convention was attended by CPIM State Secretary Jitendra Chaudhury, former Chief Executive Member of ADC Radhacharan Debbarma, and other prominent figures.