Agartala: With the Tripura by-poll scheduled for September 5, Jitendra Chaudhury, the secretary of the CPIM state committee, has called for urgent measures to counter the alleged attempts by the ruling BJP to manipulate the upcoming elections.
The by-election is set to take place in the Boxanagar and Dhanpur Assembly Constituencies, located in Tripura’s Sepahijala district.
Chaudhury’s letter to the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Puneet Agawal expresses concerns about the possibility of unfair and violent tactics employed by the BJP to undermine the integrity of the election. He points to recent incidents that seem to validate these concerns.
According to Chaudhury, on the previous night, a group of approximately 15 “BJP supporters”, traveling in two Bolero cars, were seen tampering with their vehicle license plates by covering them with cloth or paint.
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They allegedly terrorized residents by going door-to-door in areas such as Rangamura, Barkhola, Barmura, Bashpukur, and Nirbhoypur within the Dhanpur Assembly Constituency, he claimed.
These individuals reportedly threatened both voters and potential polling agents affiliated with opposition candidates, warning them not to leave their homes on September 5.
They purportedly threatened dire consequences for non-compliance.
Chaudhury, who also serves as an MLA, claimed that the police at various checkpoints did not take action to prevent the movement of these individuals, despite their allegedly malevolent intentions.
Chaudhury added, “The BJP miscreants visited the following houses and threatened them not to vote on September 5. Last night, CPI(M) candidate Koushik Chanda of Dhanpur AC attempted to contact the Returning Officer (RO) for Dhanpur, but received no response. Subsequently, he sent an urgent message via WhatsApp to the RO, who then forwarded it to the Officer-in-Charge of Jatrapur police station.” “
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“Chanda also tried to contact the Officer-in-Charge but received no response. On the same night, after 9:00 p.m., two other vehicles with concealed license plates were seen traveling between Rajnagar and Belonia, passing through Dhanpur and crossing at least four checkpoint points. Police personnel manning these checkpoints reportedly took no action to impede their movement,” Chaudhury alleged.
The CPIM further asserted that many outsiders, who are not eligible voters in these two constituencies, are currently residing there. While the police were informed about the presence of these outsiders, they allegedly took no steps to remove them from the constituency.
Chaudhury also demanded that the CEO instruct the police to act decisively, without any leniency, against what the CPIM perceives as the ruling party’s unethical attempts to interfere with the electoral process, emphasizing the importance of conducting a free, fair, and peaceful election.