The Tipra Motha, a new regional outfit in Tripura, alleged that pressure from national parties from New Delhi and Kolkata had forced several local outfits in the northeastern state to ally with those parties while contesting elections earlier.
Tipra Motha chief Pradyot Manikya Debbarma, the scion of Tripura's royal family, however, asserted that his party will not take a single penny from big political outfits, and would contest the 2023 assembly elections of its own.
I will not take a single penny from political parties like the BJP, Congress or the CPI(M) this time. If I need money, I will sell the royal palace and ornaments of Rajmata to fight the election on our own, he said, while addressing a programme of Tipra Motha's women's wing on Friday.
In an apparent reference to the BJP and the Congress, he said pressure from Delhi and Kolkata had forced the regional parties like Tripura Upajati Juba Samity (TUJS) and Indigenous People's Front of Tripura (IPFT) to go for alliance .
The IPFT now has an alliance with the BJP, while the TUJS had earlier tied up with the Congress. Debbarma said the party will fight for the cause of Tiprasa' which comprises 19 indigenous tribes of the state.
This time Tiprasa will show its strength even if force comes from Delhi. It is determined to give a reply to the atrocities meted out to the tribes in the 2023 assembly elections.
In the last 70 years, we have got MLAs, ministers and MPs but did not get our rights. Now, I must lead the Tiprasa movement for Greater Tipraland. No matter whether I win or lose, Debbarma said.
The Tipra Motha, floated by Debbarma in February 2021, seeks the formation of Greater Tipraland for the Tiprasa community.
The outfit, which is yet to be registered by the Election Commission, had swept the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC) polls in April last year.
The TTAADC area comprises two-thirds of the state's territory and is the home to the tribal community, which makes up one-third of Tripura's population.
Notably, IPFT lawmaker Dhananjoy Tripura resigned from the Tripura Assembly on Friday and joined the Tipra Motha.
He sought his community's help in winning the next elections.
I need your protection because I have so many enemies. I will fight for Greater Tipraland, he told the gathering, adding that the Tiprasa has made up its mind to fight for the society.
Debbarma promised that he would give tickets to Tiprasa women to contest in the next Assembly elections in larger numbers as he feels no society can move forward without empowering women.
