Tripura: Political row over Lord Ram statue at Srirampur

Agartala: A political controversy has erupted in Tripura’s Kailashahar subdivision following the installation of a Lord Ram statue at the Srirampur tri-junction, the former site of a statue honoring the late Left Front leader and former Deputy Chief Minister of the state Baidyanath Majumder.

Expressing his concerns and dismay over the installation of lord Ramโ€™s statue, Tripura’s Leader of Opposition has penned a letter to Chief Minister Dr. Manik Saha stating the act as โ€œshameful and painful.โ€

The leader stated that the sudden, unauthorized installation carried out under the cover of darkness on April 11 has deeply hurt public sentiment and disrespected the stateโ€™s cultural traditions.

โ€œThe site had originally featured a statue of the late leader, installed in 2012 through community initiative. Later, some unknown miscreants allegedly destroyed the statue in March 2018, shortly after the state assembly election results declaration,โ€ the letter reads.

Furthermore, the senior CPIM leader demanded administrative support for the peaceful reinstallation of Baidyanath Majumdarโ€™s statue at the original site and the relocation of lord Ramโ€™s statue to a suitable and respectable place.

Notably, Baidyanath Majumder, a stalwart Left leader, represented the Chandipur constituency five times in a row. He was also the PWD Minister and Deputy Chief Minister of Tripura. He passed away in 2011.