By Firstdespatch Desk Apr 25, 2026
Agartala, Apr 25 (FD) The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has decided to contest the forthcoming Village Council elections under the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC) independently, Chief Minister Manik Saha announced today.
Addressing reporters after chairing an organisational meeting at the party’s state headquarters, Saha said the decision to go solo was reaffirmed during post-poll review discussions. “Our decision to contest alone was correct, and we continue to stand by it. In the Village Council elections as well, we will fight independently,” he asserted.
Highlighting the importance of the polls, the Chief Minister noted that Village Councils, which function as single-tier rural local bodies in tribal areas, differ from the three-tier panchayat system followed elsewhere. He stressed the need to further strengthen the BJP’s organisational base in tribal belts, especially in regions where the party’s presence remains limited.
Saha also expressed concern over alleged attempts by supporters of Tipra Motha Party to take control of Village Council offices following the recent elections. “No elected institution can be occupied by force. Such actions, if repeated, will only diminish public trust,” he cautioned.
Earlier in the day, the Chief Minister held a detailed meeting with party candidates and cluster leaders to assess ground-level feedback from the electoral process.
The delay in holding Village Committee elections has been a contentious issue between the ruling BJP and the Tipra Motha Party. The state government attributed the delay to factors such as the COVID-19 pandemic, inclusion of Bru (Reang) refugees in electoral rolls, and the earlier move by the TTAADC to increase the number of Village Committees.
With the TTAADC recently withdrawing its notification on the creation of new Village Committees, the path has now been cleared for conducting the long-pending elections.
Meanwhile, the Supreme Court of India, in a March 18 ruling by a bench comprising Justices Manoj Mishra and Manmohan, directed the State Election Commission to complete the election process by June, lending urgency to the schedule of the much-awaited polls. FD JK