• Abhijit Nath, NET Correspondent, Tripura 

Agartala, February 24, 2022 : The former chief minister of Tripura & leader of opposition – Manik Sarkar on Thursday exhorted the supporters of the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) to create resistance against attacks and violence on them to create a new beginning in the state.

After getting vanquished in the assembly election of 2018 and at the end of four-year BJP-led government’s regime, the leading opposition political party ‘CPI-M’ for the first time in Tripura held a mammoth public rally at Swami Vivekananda Maidan here in Agartala city on Thursday following party’s 23rd conference which would be held on February 25, 26 next.

Addressing the crowd, Sarkar, who is also the Politburo member alleged “Before the formation of BJP-led government in Tripura, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and union Home minister Amit Shah had tempted common masses and arrived in power. Everything has gone the opposite as people are suffering from a severe crisis of jobs, no plan for regularization, no fresh recruitments, etc after the formation of government.”

“This ruling political party had intensified their activities in carrying out attacks on each and every thing. The only option now is ‘resistance’ and without it, there are no other alternative ways left for the opposition party supporters. Everyone has to come out of their home to augment the protest”, he also added.

Speaking-out at the public rally, former general secretary of CPIM, Prakash Karat alleged that the Modi-led BJP government is using the UAPA to throttle the voices of the common masses.

He said “The ruling political party (BJP) at the centre slap UAPA on people, whosoever is trying to raise voice against the union government. There is a direct attack on democracy, on ‘Constitution’ and on ‘Secularism’ after the formation of the Modi-government in 2014”.

Karat also blamed the government for using IB, CBI and ED for harassing and to arrest the opposition party leaders. “We have to fight against the anti-people policies of the Modi government”, he added.

Castigating the role of the Prime Minister Narendra Modi, general secretary of CPIM, Sitaram Yechury alleged “PM Modi gives more significance to divisive issues like Hijab, Love Jihad, Gau Rakhsha, etc instead of speaking for the welfare of common masses.”

He said “In order to establish democracy and save the constitution, the time had come to stage a fight against the BJP-led government and oust it from power. This saffron party destroyed peace and harmony between indigenous and non-indigenous masses living in Tripura and engaged in vote-bank politics.”

Tripura CPI-M secretary and former MP Jitendra Choudhury said that the red party workers were threatened by ruling BJP goons to prevent them from attending this public rally. But they failed to stop the opposition supporters and today’s crowd was remarkable being the opposition party in Tripura.