Agartala, Oct 29 (NationPress) As tensions and divergent views continue to rise within the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its coalition partner, the Tipra Motha Party (TMP), a significant closed-door meeting took place with central observers at the party’s state headquarters this Wednesday.

According to party sources, the gathering included BJP’s Northeast coordinator and national spokesperson Sambit Patra, central observer and former Lok Sabha member Rajdeep Roy, alongside senior party members, ministers, MLAs, and other officials.

Patra, who is also a Lok Sabha member from Puri, visited Gomati district on Tuesday immediately after arriving in Agartala with Roy and offered prayers at the historic Tripura Sundari Temple, one of the 51 Shakti Peethas revered in Hinduism.

He subsequently held several discussions with Chief Minister Manik Saha, state president Rajib Bhattacharjee, and selected leaders, ministers, and MLAs during Tuesday night and Wednesday.

After the meeting, CM Saha posted on his official X account: “Had a courtesy meeting with Hon’ble MP & Northeast Coordinator of BJP Sambit Patra at my official residence today. We discussed various key organizational issues.”

In a Facebook post, state Tourism and Transport Minister and BJP leader Sushanta Chowdhury remarked: “At the state party headquarters today, BJP national spokesperson and MP Dr. Sambit Patra, state in-charge Dr. Rajdeep Roy, party president Rajib Bhattacharjee, along with my esteemed colleagues from the state council of ministers, MLAs, and senior party functionaries, attended an organizational meeting.”

Chowdhury indicated that the meeting extensively covered upcoming organizational programs and activities. Recent events have placed the ruling BJP in a challenging position, shaking state politics.

On October 19, the BJP issued a show-cause notice to its sitting MLA, Tafajjal Hossain, for making negative remarks about former Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb and former Union Minister Pratima Bhoumik.

The notice indicated that disciplinary action would follow if the MLA’s response was deemed unsatisfactory. During a football match at Boxanagar in Sepahijala district on October 18, Hossain accused both Deb and Bhoumik of failing to allocate funds for constructing a gallery at a playground.

Additionally, comments made by Scheduled Castes and Animal Resource Development Minister Sudhangshu Das ignited a political uproar, with opposition parties, including the CPI-M and Congress, turning it into a significant issue.

In an interview, the minister allegedly confessed that some leaders collect funds from contractors to support their social work expenses. The video clip of the minister’s interview went viral, causing public outcry. Das later threatened to pursue legal action against a social media creator and Leader of Opposition Jitendra Chaudhury for criticizing his comments, asserting he was “embarrassed beyond words.”

In another incident, senior BJP leader and former Union Minister Pratima Bhoumik had a heated exchange with senior police officials near Nailahabari in Dhalai district after her vehicle was halted at a police blockade.

This confrontation highlighted internal conflicts within the ruling BJP and raised concerns regarding law enforcement actions following recent violence at Santirbazar in the same district.

Bhoumik sarcastically criticized the state’s law and order situation and the police's role in managing the violent activities of the tribal-based Tipra Motha Party (TMP), which is also a BJP ally. Recent months have seen a “sweet-and-sour relationship” persist between the ruling BJP and its ally TMP.

Activists affiliated with TMP have conducted a series of attacks across various districts, injuring over 20 BJP members and karyakartas. The TMP-led Tiprasa Civil Society (TCS), under the leadership of TMP MLA Ranjit Debbarma, observed a 24-hour statewide shutdown on October 23 to support its eight-point charter of demands, including the deportation of illegal migrants.

During the shutdown, some TMP activists assaulted several individuals and officials in Santirbazar, resulting in serious injuries to more than 12 people.

Among the injured were Salema Block Development Officer (BDO) Abhijit Majumdar, Kamalpur Sub-Divisional Police Officer (SDPO) Samudra Debbarma, engineer Animesh Saha, and trader Subrata Paul, all of whom were hospitalized with critical injuries.

With elections to the politically pivotal Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC) approaching early next year, both the BJP and TMP are striving separately to extend their reach among tribal communities.