Hours after the Tripura by-election results the Left Front and Congress on Sunday attacked the Trinamool Congress for working as the real “vote katua” party that was working with the purpose of helping the BJP.
Showing how the people of Tripura had rejected the TMC by relegating it to the fourth position in all the four Assembly constituencies where Assembly by election results were declared on Sunday, senior CPI(M) leader Sujan Chakrabarty said “the election results only show the real acceptability of the TMC in Tripura and the real intention of their leaders in going to that State with all the camera focus behind them … they are the real vote cutters.”
While in all the four seats both the CPI(M) and the TMC ended winning no seats, the Left managed to retain the second place in two seats whereas the TMC was pushed to the fourth slot in all the four seats.
Another State committee leader said “it is quite clear why the BJP was continuously targeting the TMC … this is because they wanted to shift the focus on that party as the real challenger so as to cut the opposition votes … TMC will make no presence in Tripura in the next year’s Assembly elections… they are the appointed agents of the BJP to spoil the opposition unity … as they did in Goa so they are doing in Tripura … till a few weeks ago their biggest leaders like Abhishek Banerjee was coming to Tripura … he has fulfilled his goal … now the BJP Government will not send ED, CBI to their houses for a few weeks.” Saying that in by-elections people generally vote in fear in States like Tripura, CPI(M)’s Rabin Deb said “a change is inevitable in that State and the BJP Government is bound to go in 2023.”
The TMC leadership promptly hit back to the Left attack saying LF was a spent force and that they existed only on sign boards. “We accept that we are on the fourth spot … but which child grows into a strongman soon after birth … We have started our journey and will win Tripura … But Tripura has rejected the Left and will never bring them back,” said senior party leader JP Mullick.
Meanwhile, stray violence marked the Sunday’s Bengal civic by-elections and Siliguri sub-divisional board polls with about 78 percent voters exercising their franchise.
While about 78 percent voters cast their votes in Siliguri, 69% and 72% of voters voted in South and North Dum Dum. At Bhatpara the constituency of BJP-turned-TMC MP Arjun Singh 74 percent voters cast their votes amid complaints of massive rigging. At Jhalada in Purulia district and Panihati in North 24 Parganas 80 percent and 56 percent voters exercised their franchise respectively.
In Siliguri Sub-divisional board elections about 78 percent voters cast their votes amid reports of violence near Phansidawa, Motabari and Naxalbari Assembly areas.
While State Election Commissioner Sourav Das said that the polls were nearly peaceful with about reports of some disturbance coming from 5-6 places only the Left and the BJP complained there was rampant rigging in these areas.
“It is undeclared Emergency going on in Bengal … let alone the voters, here no candidate is safe … the Sunday’s violence has clearly shown that,” State BJP president Sukanto Majumdar said. TMC MP Sukhendu Shekhar Roy however said that there was no violence adding “the losers will have to show some excuse for their defeat … this is the same excuse they are putting forward for the people.”