With by-polls in two Assembly Constituencies in Tripura slated to be held on September 5, two top leaders of the Tripura Pradesh Congress made a formal appeal on Sunday to party activists in by-poll bound Dhanpur and Boxanagar under the Sonamura sub-division to vote for the CPIM nominated candidates against the BJP nominees.

The leaders appeal aimed to thwart the BJP’s chances of victory.

Speaking at a party workers’ meeting in Sonamura, State Congress president Ashish Saha and party MLA Sudip Roy Barman made a passionate appeal to Congress supporters, stating, “We urge the Congress supporters of the Dhanpur and Boxanagar Constituencies to cast their votes in favor of the CPIM candidate.”

Notably, no prominent state Congress leaders had held meetings in the two constituencies and today’s appeal was made during a party workers’ meeting at Sonamura. 

Roy Barman justified the call to vote for Left candidates by stating that it is essential to strengthen the anti-BJP forces under the ‘INDIA’ banner. He passionately appealed to the people to rally behind Congress to save India and stressed the significance of a robust Congress party.

He attempted to boost the morale of Sonamura supporters after Mia’s defection, stating that Mia’s exit from the party could ultimately benefit Congress. 

The Congress MLA also criticized the Modi-led government, alleging that corporate sectors, such as Adani, had received substantial funds from institutions like LIC and SBI. He warned that if Adani were to leave the country and seek refuge in a nation without an extradition treaty with India, major financial institutions could collapse.

Furthermore, Roy Barman pointed out that many of the welfare policies currently being rolled out by the BJP had their origins in Congress initiatives, with the BJP merely renaming these schemes.

During their address, the Congress leaders also brought up the issue of Billal Mia, a former Congress leader who recently joined the BJP. Saha and Roy Barman claimed that Billal Mia had expressed a desire to contest from Boxanagar as a candidate of the Congress-CPIM alliance. However, Congress leaders emphasized that such a move would not be feasible given the current circumstances.

Roy Barman asserted that exit of Billal Mia will not weaken party in the Sonamura sub-division.