Three-Tier Panchayat Poll Underway in Tripura

Agartala, July 27, 2019:

Tripura is heading to the polls yet again. Altogether, 833 Panchayat seats, 82 Panchayat samiti seats and 79 Zila Parishads of Tripura are going to polls today, as per the schedule of the three-tier Panchayat elections.

According to official data, the ruling Bharatiya Janata party is contesting in almost all the 6,111 Panchayat, 419 Panchayat Samity and 116 Zila Parishad seats all over the state. More than 90 percent of the seats already went to the BJP's grasp as with no candidates being fielded from the part of opposition parties.

Whereas, the CPIM, the main opposition party of the state, is contesting in 305 Gram Panchayat seats, 56 Panchayat Samity seats and 67 Zila Parishad seats. The Congress party has filled nomination in 611 Gram Panchayat seats, 60 Panchayat Samity seats and 63 Zila Parishad seats. And, the IPFT, partner in the incumbent BJP-IPFT is in contest in 37 Panchayat seats, 02 Panchayat Samity seats.

In terms of security, Tripura State Rifles (TSR) personnel and 17 companies of BSF and CRPF would be deployed in all the 1,848 polling booths of which 1,172 have been identified as sensitive, as per higher officials of the Police.

Moreover, a total of 12,03,070 voters, including 6,16,893 male and 5, 86,176 women will exercise their franchise at 2,623 polling stations between 7 am to 4 pm on the polling day, sources in the election department said.

Speaking to Inside Northeast, IPFT youth leader Sukla Charan Noatia, said: "It is expected that the party which is in power will win the elections. That is the trend in Tripura."

Speaking on the alliance between the IPFT and BJP, he said: "The alliance is going good, but some middlemen are trying to ruin the impression of the BJP and the IPFT parties by carrying out acts of violence."

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