Two Congress workers were injured in a lathi charge during a protest in Unakoti, Tripura, on Friday night. The protest, led by senior Congress leader and MLA Birajit Sinha, took place near the District Magistrate’s office in Kailashahar, drawing a significant number of Congress supporters. The demonstration began at around 7 p.m., with participants voicing their grievances over election-related issues and alleged irregularities in the region.
The Unakoti District Congress Committee organized the protest as part of a larger plan to call for a bandh on August 12. Their primary concern revolved around the allocation of space at the counting hall for the upcoming election. The Congress party claimed that the space initially assigned to them during an all-party meeting on August 5 had been unlawfully occupied by the BJP. This led to heightened tensions and a sense of injustice among the Congress workers.
Matters escalated when the Congress delegation, led by Sinha, went to the District Magistrate’s office to discuss the issue but found that the DM was not present. Frustrated by their inability to address their concerns directly, the Congress workers engaged in a heated discussion with the Additional District Magistrate. However, when these discussions failed to yield a satisfactory resolution, the protesters forcibly entered the office premises, raising slogans and staging a sit-in.
In addition to the issue of space allocation at the counting hall, the Congress party also protested against alleged irregularities in the handling of electricity supply by Sai Computer Limited, a private company responsible for providing services in Kailashahar. Sinha accused the BJP of deliberately orchestrating load shedding to disrupt the election process, further fueling the Congress party’s grievances. He warned that if the District Magistrate failed to address these issues by the end of the night, the scheduled bandh on August 10 would proceed as planned.
Amid growing tensions and the continuing protest, the District Magistrate eventually arrived on the scene. He met with Sinha and other local Congress leaders, assuring them that the Congress party would be given the pre-assigned side (East) of the counting hall at the relocated counting center in Baidyanath Majumdar Smriti Higher Secondary School. This assurance temporarily alleviated some of the protesters’ concerns.
However, before the District Magistrate’s arrival, central forces reportedly resorted to a lathi charge in an attempt to disperse the protesters. This action resulted in injuries to two Congress workers, who were subsequently hospitalized. The lathi charge has further intensified the situation, with Congress leaders condemning the use of force against their workers and demanding accountability.
