BJP On Sticky Wicket In Tripura
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By Our Editorial Team
First publised on 2022-05-16 09:15:08
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The India Commentary view
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In continuation of what has now become its standard policy to fight anti-incumbency (except for UP where Yogi Adityanath is in a league of his own), the BJP effected a change of guard in Tripura. Biplab Deb was removed as chief minister and his close associate, Dr Manik Saha, was sworn-in as the next chief minister less than a year before elections are due in the state.
While the decision to remove Deb and induct Saha was obviously taken at the highest level in the party, not all in the state unit were happy with it. There was drama during Saha's 'election' when minister Ram Prasad Paul hurled several chairs before he was brought under control. He evidently wanted deputy chief minister Jishu Dev Varma of the IPFT to be made the chief minister. Paul and Dev Varma, along with N C Debbarma, also skipped the swearing-in of Manik Saha before Amit Shah intervened to make them reach the venue, but they reached after the event was over. Evidently, both Paul and Dev Varma have been placated and have agreed to join the new cabinet.
But the peace brokered by Amit Shah is unlikely to hold for two reasons: first, the situation is different in Tripura from what it was in Uttarakhand, Karnataka and Gujarat and two, Manik Saha is too closely identified with Biplab Deb to placate the dissidents. The state units in other states are well entrenched while the one in Tripura is new and full of people who work against each other. It is only the iron hand of the high command which has kept it together. But as elections near and if the mood of the people is seen to be clearly against the BJP, many will leave the party. In case of Saha, the party had no choice as removing Deb and inducting someone from the opposing camp would have antagonized him and further dampened the party's prospects.
The BJP can take solace from the fact that the opposition is hopelessly divided in the state with little or no chance for the TMC, the CPM and the Congress, or any two of them, coming together. Further, as of now, none of the opposition parties look capable of reaping the benefit of the anti-incumbency against the BJP government. But things can change fast and the BJP will have to set its house in order for it to have any hopes of winning the peopleâs trust once again.
