AGARTALA: Tripura’s royal scion Pradyot Bikram Manikya Debbarma is keeping his cards close to his chest even as he puts up TIPRA Motha, the tribe-based party he heads, against the ruling BJP and no love lost for his alma mater Congress. He says Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma may be the “Chanakya” of Northeast but “I am the Manikya of Tripura.”
Excerpts from an interview:
Why do you need ‘Greater Tipraland’?
The socio-economic, cultural and legislative rights have been denied to the tribals. That is why we are asking for a constitutional solution. Greater Tipraland will not discriminate against anybody. Nobody will be evicted.
The Assam CM said BJP is against Tripura’s bifurcation. What is your take on it?
Even I am against the division of Tripura. Who did politics in the name of tribals and non-tribals in Tripura? Who did BJP align with? It aligned with a party (Indigenous People’s Front of Tripura or IPFT) that demanded Tipraland and whose rallies used to turn violent in Agartala. Was Tripura not disintegrating when you aligned with them? And when we talk about constitutional solutions, it pricks you because we have not compromised.
What steps will you take to realise Greater Tipraland if voted to power?
We will talk and negotiate. We believe in the paths of Mahatma Gandhi and Maharaja Bir Bikram. We believe in Vivekananda. We will never indulge in violence. There should be dialogues for solutions. The problem has to be solved by the government. If it can talk to Hurriyat, ULFA and NSCN, why not to us? We are not doing anything illegal.
Why did your attempt to merge IPFT with TIPRA Motha not succeed?
It did not happen because I don’t have as much money as the BJP. What else could be the reason? It is sad that IPFT is irrelevant now. Money is not everything in life. The British had more money than the Indians in India but they had to one day leave the country because there were passion and honesty among Indians.
TIPRA Motha is contesting 42 seats, including 20 ST seats where it is influential. What made it contest the 22 non-ST seats?
We are in a very good position in the 22 non-ST seats. You should appreciate that no regional parties gave a chance to non-tribals for 60 years. We have given it. We are trying to change the system.
The Assam CM said voting for TIPRA Motha holds no meaning as it cannot form the government in Tripura and it is not in power in Delhi. Your thoughts?
Once everyone in Assam would say do not vote for BJP. AGP is a bigger party and BJP is a smaller party. Today, AGP is lost while BJP is a bigger party. And going by his logic, people should also not vote for BJP in Meghalaya, Mizoram, Tamil Nadu and Kerala where it cannot capture power.
What will be TIPRA Motha’s priorities if voted to power?
We will first improve the law and order situation. We will have to uproot corruption and give jobs. We have to talk about people’s rights. There is poverty. It has to be alleviated by granting rights to people.
You have been constantly in touch with CPM state secretary Jitendra Choudhury. Is there a tacit understanding?
Why should I not talk to Choudhury or for that matter Sudip Roy Barman (Congress) and Jishnu Dev Varma (BJP)? But I am not going to align with CPM. If I talk to Rahul Gandhi, will it mean I am aligning with Congress? I had a meeting with Himanta dada. Am I aligning with BJP? Friendship and politics are two different things. It is a personal gesture that I have not fielded candidates against Choudhury, state Congress chief Birajit Sinha and BJP state president Rajiv Bhattacharya.
What is your assessment of the polls?
There are too many players but there is only one captain…Himanta dada is the Chanakya of the Northeast but I am the erstwhile Manikya of Tripura (he belongs to Tripura’s Manikya dynasty).
Why are you not contesting?
It is not about me. I never said I want to be the chief minister of Tripura or a minister or an MP. Three of our top leaders are not contesting because we want to send a message that it is not about us but about people. If you want to make a sacrifice, it has to be from the top.