BJP national president J.P. Nadda on Thursday came down heavily on the Opposition Congress and the Communists at a rally in pollbound Tripura.

This comes a day after the CPM said it was focussing on mobilising anti-BJP votes while hinting at the possibility of aligning with the Congress and Tipra Motha, a regional party, to oust the ruling BJP. In his nearly 30 minutes speech at a well-attended rally to mark the culmination of the party’s eight-day Jan Vishwas Yatra in Agartala, Nadda listed out the “achievements” of the Narendra Modi-led central government and the party-led state government.

The Jan Vishwas Yatra, which crisscrossed the state’s 60 Assembly constituencies showcasing the government’s achievements, was launched by Union home minister Amit Shah on December 5.

While highlighting efforts at tackling the Covid pandemic, bolstering the economy, building hospitals to universities across the country by the Modi government and ensuring development and the rule of law under the BJPled government in Tripura, he kept reminding the crowd about the “misrule” under the erstwhile Left Front and the Congress governments and why these parties should not be allowed to return to power.

CPM general secretary Sitaram Yechury in a media interaction in Agartala on Wednesday had said it was “absolutely essential that the BJP must be defeated to restore” the rule of law and democracy in Tripura.

Asserting people’s livelihood “miseries have quadrupled” in the last five years, Yechury had said, “In order to achieve this objective (defeat BJP), we discussed it in our state committee yesterday (Tuesday).

“Our primary focus will be to seek the cooperation and unity of all secular forces to ensure the defeat of the BJP in the interest of the people of Tripura and in the interest of the rule of Constitution of India.”

The BJP-IPFT combine had come to power in 2018, ending the CPM-led Left Front’s 25-year uninterrupted reign in Tripura.

On Thursday, Nadda hit back at the Left and the Congress, which seem to be inching closer to a pre-poll alliance or seat adjustment.

Wooing the ration card holders of the state, approximately 9,58,782 out of a population of over 40-lakh, Nadda said, “If I talk about the PDS, during the Communist regime, you used to get only rice, atta, kerosene oil and salt. Today, under the Manik Saha government, and before him Biplab Deb government, you are getting sugar, masoor dal, tea, soya, rice, atta, kerosene and salt.”

He then added, “In the coming days, you will get sarso ka tail (mustard oil) and masala (spices). Just remember this. This is badalta (changing) Tripura. Today a new chapter on development is being written.”