AGARTALA: The ruling BJP in Tripura on Friday announced a 16-member election management committee with the party's state president Rajib Bhattacharjee as its head, months before the state goes to the polls.
Chief Minister Manik Saha, Rajya Sabha MP Biplab Kumar Deb, Union Minister Pratima Bhoumik, Deputy Chief Minister Jishnu Devvarma and MP Rebati Tripura were among those named as its members.
BJP's national spokesperson Sambit Patra, who is the coordinator for Northeast, and state in-charge Mahesh Sharma were made special invitees to the committee, party spokesperson Nabendu Bhattacharjee said.
Patra is scheduled to visit the state on October 19 and 20 to streamline the party's preparedness for the 2023 assembly elections, sources said.
BJP's national general secretary BL Santosh is likely to visit the state on October 21, they said.
Santosh and Patra attended the party's strategic meetings held at Hapania fair ground last month to prepare a roadmap for the election.
The BJP runs the government in the Northeastern state in alliance with the Indigenous People's Front of Tripura (IPFT), after storming to power in 2018, ousting the Left Front government of 25 years.
The tenure of the present assembly is scheduled to expire in the first week of March next year.