Elections for the three-tier Gram Panchayats in Tripura are set to be held on August 8 under stringent security measures. This comes after the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) secured an overwhelming 70 percent of the seats unopposed, State Election Commissioner (SEC) Saradindu Chaudhuri announced on Wednesday.
To ensure the elections proceed peacefully, over 10,000 state security forces, including personnel from the Tripura State Rifles (TSR), and approximately 2,200 Central Armed Police Force (CAPF) personnel have been deployed. This heightened security presence follows allegations from opposition parties of pre-poll violence, intimidation, and attacks.
The BJP candidates have been declared victorious without contest in 4,551 out of the 6,370 Gram Panchayat seats, 235 out of 423 Panchayat Samiti seats, and 20 out of 116 Zilla Parishad seats. According to SEC officials, elections will take place on Thursday for 1,819 seats in 606 Gram Panchayats, 188 seats in 35 Panchayat Samitis, and 96 seats in eight Zilla Parishads.
The Tripura Gram Panchayats comprise 6,370 seats in 606 Gram Panchayats, 423 seats in 35 Panchayat Samitis, and 116 seats in eight Zilla Parishads, with a mandatory 33 percent reservation for women. The votes for these elections will be counted on August 12.
On July 18, the Tripura High Court directed the SEC to ensure free and fair Gram Panchayat elections on August 8. The directive came from a division bench comprising Justice Arindam Lodh and Justice Sabyasachi Datta Purkayastha, following petitions filed by the opposition Congress and CPI-M. These petitions requested the court to mandate fair elections after numerous incidents of violence were reported while opposition candidates attempted to submit their nominations.
The Congress and CPI (M)-led Left Front have accused BJP workers and associated “goons” of preventing their candidates from submitting nomination papers in numerous seats. Despite multiple appeals to the SEC and the police, the opposition parties allege that BJP supporters have continued to create a hostile environment to obstruct their participation in the elections. The opposition also requested permission for candidates to submit nominations via email, but this appeal was rejected due to a lack of legal provisions.
Sudip Roy Barman, Congress Working Committee member and former minister, claimed that 3,383 party candidates were obstructed from submitting their nomination papers due to violent interventions by ruling party cadres. Similarly, CPI (M) leader and Left Front convener Narayan Kar reported that Left party candidate Badal Shil was critically injured in an attack by BJP supporters on July 12 in Rajnagar, South Tripura district. Shil succumbed to his injuries the following day.
Both Congress and CPI-M leaders have reported that approximately 100 candidates, party workers, and supporters have been injured in attacks since the election schedule was announced on July 10. They continue to accuse the ruling BJP of creating an atmosphere of fear and violence to undermine the democratic process.
The BJP, however, has dismissed these allegations, claiming that the opposition parties failed to field enough candidates for the rural body polls. The ruling party also pointed to the last Panchayat elections on July 27, 2019, where the BJP won over 95 percent of the seats, 86 percent of which were unopposed, despite opposition claims that the election process was a farce.
