Reported by: Mrinal Banik
Agartala: Proceedings of the Tripura Legislative Assembly were suspended 15 minutes before the scheduled recess on Thursday following a heated exchange between treasury and opposition members over remarks allegedly made by Leader of the Opposition Jitendra Choudhury at an event attended by the Cuban Ambassador.
The session resumed at 2 pm after the intervention of Speaker Ram Pada Jamatia.
The confrontation began when Power Minister Ratan Lal Nath demanded an apology from Choudhury over his speech at an event held at Rabindra Satabarshiki Bhavan to mark the centenary of revolutionary leader and former Cuban President Fidel Castro.
Nath alleged that Choudhury had criticised nationalism and compared the present Indian state with imperialist powers. He described the remarks as objectionable and demanded an apology from the Leader of the Opposition.
The Power Minister also alleged that the Communist Party of India (Marxist) had shown disrespect to the national flag during the programme, claiming that Cuban flags outnumbered Indian tricolours at the venue.
“We have no objection to the arrival of the Cuban envoy, but any statement that puts the country in a bad light in the presence of a foreign delegate should be condemned,” Nath said.
During his speech, Nath also used terms such as “Chinese” and “Pakistani” agents while referring to CPI(M) legislators, prompting protests from the opposition benches. BJP MLAs raised slogans against CPI(M) members while holding the national flag.
Choudhury hit back, accusing the BJP of acting as agents of the British and the United States.
The confrontation escalated when BJP legislators, led by Nath, insisted that CPI(M) members apologise unconditionally for Choudhury’s remarks at the August 19 event.
Nath also referred to August 19 as the birth anniversary of Maharaja Bir Bikram and alleged that the CPI(M) had not observed the birth anniversaries of local leaders.
Choudhury subsequently attempted to raise an issue concerning the census exercise, but Nath objected and insisted that CPI(M) legislators either apologise or leave the House.
As the verbal exchange intensified, Speaker Jamatia suspended the proceedings 15 minutes ahead of the scheduled recess.
Later, speaking to reporters at his Assembly chamber, Choudhury rejected the allegations and said the Minister had misinterpreted his speech.
“The Minister has misinterpreted my speech and also made some assertions which are baseless and unfounded,” Choudhury said, adding that programmes organised from August 19 to 21 were open to the public and covered by several media houses.
He said national flags of both India and Cuba had been displayed at the venue.
Choudhury further alleged that Nath was using the controversy to avoid questions over recent issues concerning power tariff hikes and outages. He claimed the Minister was attempting to divert attention from the government’s accountability over the matter.