Agartala: Tension prevailed at Chottakhola in South Tripura’s Belonia subdivision on Wednesday after police stopped a CPI(M) procession organised in memory of party leader Badal Chandra Shil, citing concerns over a possible law and order situation.
The rally, led by senior CPI(M) leaders, including Leader of Opposition Jitendra Choudhury, was heading towards Chottakhola when police intercepted it after a large group of villagers gathered along the route in protest.
According to police, the villagers, the majority of them women, blocked the road in opposition to the procession. They alleged that seven villagers had been falsely implicated in the 2024 murder case of Shil.
The accused were granted bail earlier but were later sent back to jail after the deceased leader’s family successfully moved the High Court seeking the cancellation of their bail.
With both groups assembled in close proximity, police prevented the procession from proceeding, saying the move was necessary to avoid any untoward incident.
The police action triggered a confrontation between CPI(M) leaders and the officers on duty. During the exchange, Choudhury criticised the police and was heard in a video calling the district Superintendent of Police “an idiot”, claiming he had raised the matter with the Director General of Police on multiple occasions.
Additional Superintendent of Police (South Tripura) Suman Majumder objected to the remarks and urged the Opposition leader to exercise restraint, stating that such comments were unbecoming of a senior political figure.
Former MLA Sudhan Das also engaged in a heated argument with police personnel, while CPI(M) supporters raised slogans against the administration.
Addressing party workers after the standoff, Choudhury accused the state government of allowing the law and order situation to deteriorate and alleged that anti-social elements were influencing the administration.
He asserted that the party would continue visiting the area and intensify its political campaign.
Police officials said permission had initially been granted for the rally. However, they decided to stop the procession before it reached its destination after assessing the situation on the ground and receiving inputs about a possible confrontation between the rally participants and the protesting villagers.
Badal Chandra Shil, the CPI(M)’s candidate in the last Zilla Parishad election, died in 2024 after allegedly being assaulted by a group of people.
The party has consistently accused the ruling BJP of being behind the attack, an allegation denied by the party.