Agartala: What was expected to be a closely contested election has instead turned one-sided, with the Tipra Motha Party sweeping the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC) polls with a larger majority and wider margins.

As per the latest updates, Tipra Motha candidates have been declared victorious in 20 seats, while in four more seats the party is leading by a comfortable margin. The BJP has won three seats and is leading in one more.

The saffron party’s presence in the 28-member TTAADC has seen a drastic 50 percent dip, as it had secured 10 seats in the last elections, although one of its MDCs later defected to Tipra Motha.

Tipra Motha, on the other hand, has gained additional seats, and if the party wins the seats it is currently leading in, it is set for a strong comeback.

The CPI(M), Congress, and IPFT drew a blank as the elections to the politically crucial constitutional body turned into a bipolar contest between the BJP and Tipra Motha, who are otherwise allies in the coalition government ruling the state.

Senior Tipra Motha leaders such as sitting CEM Pruna Chandra Jamatia, Kamal Kaloi, retired IAS officer C.K. Jamatia who served in the TTAADC, and Rabindra Debbarma retained their seats with larger margins.

Senior BJP leaders such as party secretary Devid Debbarma, party general secretary Bipin Debbarma, and Tribal Welfare Minister Bikash Debbarma’s close relative Billow Jamatia lost their seats.

The BJP performed comparatively better in non-tribal seats.

Further details are awaited.

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