Trinamul Congress national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee’s two-day visit to Tripura from Sunday was marked by denial of permission by the BJP-headed state administration to host a felicitation in Khowai district.

“They can cancel as many events as they want, they won’t be able to defeat Mamata Banerjee,” the Trinamul MP said.

Attacking the BJP and the chief minister Biplab Kumar Deb over the development, the Trinamul Tripura unit tweeted that the Banerjee’s programme at the Baramura Eco Park was “cancelled at the last minute” by the administration.

The eco-park is about 37km far state capital. However, Banerjee inaugurated a party office 10km away from the park under the Teliamura sub-division and also visited a party worker’s residence under Khowai district.

This is Banerjee’s fourth visit to the state since the rebuilding of the party started with the “objective of ousting” the BJP-led government in the 2023 Assembly polls.

This is also Banerjee third straight where events involving him have been affected owing to denial of permission or change in venue by the administration, something which was referred to by the Trinamul MP after cancellation of the felicitation programme at the eco park.

“The BJP dispensation, led by chief minister Biplab Deb, can cancel as many events as they want but they wouldn’t be able to defeat Mamata Banerjee. Earlier too, they had cancelled AITC’s events citing Covid guidelines, but the very next day, BJP held an event where Covid guidelines were forgotten.

“BJP doesn’t need any permission and this is the sorry state of affairs in Tripura at the moment. The rules are different for the ruling party,” Banerjee said.

A letter issued by the office of the Sub-Divisional Police Officer at Teliamura stated that Banerjee’s visit to Baramura Eco Park stood cancelled as the SDPO had already given permission to a trust to organise an event at the same venue, where state minister M.K. Jamatia would address the crowd.

The SDPO’s letter informing cancellation of the programme involving Banerjee by a “non-political tribal group” at the park at 1.45 pm —has been cancelled also stated that “ even there is no prior permission from appropriate authority to organise a programme” at the park by the Trinamul Lok Sabha MP.

In his reaction, Banerjee also “felt sorry” for BJP workers who “began” playing loud music at the Chaturdasa Devata Temple the moment he entered the complex soon after his arrival in Agartala on Sunday morning.

“They haven’t even left the temple complex in peace. If BJP goons spend a fraction of this effort in improving the state’s infrastructure, the state would have been in a much better place,” he said.

Baptu Chakraborty, a state Trinamul leader, said that the “practice” of denying permission to the MP’s events has spilled over on to the new year. “This shows the BJP is afraid of Trinamul. This shows people are not with the BJP,” he said reacting to the eco park development.

Banerjee had earlier in the day addressed a press meet after his temple visit where he took on the ruling dispensation.

Highlighting the progress made by the party to become the “principal opposition” in the state in just three months after “securing over 23 per cent vote share in the urban body’s civic polls in December,” he said.

“Now we have a years’ time to prepare for state polls in 2023 and we will make sure that Biplab Deb’s Goonda Model of governance doesn’t work anymore.”

He also highlighted how Trinamul is the “only” party taking on the BJP head on and the “stark” difference in governance between seven years under Prime Minister Narendra Modi and ten years under Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee.

“From Bengal to Goa to Tripura, we are active on the ground at every place. We aren’t cowed down upon BJP’s might and its use

of investigative agencies. We will fight the BJP in Tripura and make sure that vandalism has no place in the state. They will attack us, they will break our cars and properties, but they will never break our spirit... . I challenge the BJP to bring out its report card, and we will bring out ours. You will see the difference,” Banerjee said.

BJP spokesperson Nabendu Bhattacharya said giving or not giving permission is the administration’s call.

“But we can only say that the Trinamul makes claim only to remain in the news. Everybody knows where is jungle raj — in Bengal or Tripura! People of Tripura know what is happening,” he said.