Agartala, August 26: With elections to the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC) Village Committees approaching, the CPI(M) has intensified efforts to revive its organisation in the state’s tribal areas and turn growing public discontent against the BJP-led government into electoral support.
The CPI(M) state committee began a two-day meeting at the party headquarters in Melarmath on Wednesday, attended by party general secretary M.A. Baby, former Chief Minister Manik Sarkar and state secretary Jitendra Chaudhury.
The party has been holding regular meetings to prepare for the Village Committee elections, with Baby attending two such deliberations in recent months. For the CPI(M), the polls are being seen as an opportunity to assess whether it can rebuild its once-strong organisational base among tribal voters.
Tripura has 20 Scheduled Tribe-reserved Assembly constituencies among its 60 seats, making the tribal belt crucial to the state’s electoral arithmetic. The political landscape, however, has changed significantly, with the BJP, TIPRA Motha and IPFT now occupying much of the space historically dominated by the Left.
Speaking to reporters, Chaudhury said the state committee would review recent political and organisational developments and finalise programmes for the coming months. He alleged deterioration in law and order, corruption, nepotism, financial mismanagement and growing public hardship in the state.
Chaudhury also cited the CPI(M)’s August 10 ‘jail bharo’ agitation, claiming that thousands participated, as an indication of growing dissatisfaction with the government. The party will discuss ways to convert such discontent into organised electoral support.
The BJP-TIPRA Motha differences are expected to feature prominently in the CPI(M)’s campaign. Chaudhury said the public disagreements between the alliance partners exposed contradictions within the ruling arrangement.
The party is also preparing its strategy for the forthcoming Assembly short session and possible urban local-body elections later this year. National issues, including the Citizenship Amendment Act, youth and student protests and policies of the Narendra Modi government, are also expected to figure in the deliberations.
For the CPI(M), however, the immediate priority remains the TTAADC Village Committee elections. The party hopes to use the polls to regain political relevance in the tribal belt and prevent the ruling alliance from consolidating its position.
The elections could thus serve as an early test of the Left’s broader strategy to rebuild its tribal base ahead of the 2028 Tripura Assembly elections.
