GUWAHATI: The Centre on Saturday signed a “historic” agreement with Tripura government and the state’s principal opposition party TIPRA Motha towards finding a solution to the problems being faced by the state’s indigenous tribal population – Tiprasa.
The signing of the tripartite pact in New Delhi followed a series of meetings that the Centre held with TIPRA Motha and other stakeholders.
It was agreed to amicably resolve all issues, relating to history, land and political rights, economic development, identity, culture and language of Tripura’s indigenous populace.
It was also agreed to constitute a Joint Working Group/Committee to work out and implement the mutually-agreed points in a time-bound manner. Till such time, it was agreed that all stakeholders will refrain from resorting to any form of protest or agitation in order to maintain a conducive atmosphere.
Union home minister Amit Shah, who was present during the signing of the agreement, said it was a historic day for Tripura.
“With this agreement, we have honoured history, corrected mistakes in history and accepted the realities of today,” Shah said as he was flanked by Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha and others.
“Nobody can change history but we can always move forward by learning from mistakes and keeping in mind today’s realities. I am happy that TIPRA Motha and all tribal parties played a constructive role in this direction,” he said.
Shah also said that under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Centre made efforts to give shape to the vision of an insurgency-free, dispute-free and violence-free Northeast. He said due to several agreements signed by the Modi government, around 10,000 rebels gave up arms and joined the mainstream. He said this resulted in the creation of an environment of development.
Saturday’s signing of the agreement followed TIPRA Motha chief Pradyot Kishore Manikya Debbarma’s fast-unto-death stir.
He was delivering a speech on Wednesday during the stir demanding “Greater Tipraland” state, when somebody, apparently from the ministry of home affairs, called him over the phone and invited him to Delhi for talks. He left the place immediately.
In a video message on Saturday, he thanked the Centre, Tripura government and the Tiprasa people for the agreement.
“Without the poor Tiprasa, we could have achieved nothing. There was a time when I was sick and I thought of quitting this fight. But you shed tears for me,” the royal scion-turned-politician said.
“People are celebrating but I want to tell you that many accords were signed even before this. They were not implemented because we did not work thereafter and were not disciplined. This accord gives a direction. If we want to implement it, we have to maintain discipline and work three times more,” Debbarma said.
He stressed the formation of a committee. He said the views of Tiprasa leaders, with or without political affiliations, have to be taken towards achieving the rights of the Tiprasa.