Centre to appoint interlocutor, says Tipra Motha chief after meeting Shah

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday held discussions with Tipra Motha supremo Pradyot Kishore Debbarma, in the presence of Bharatiya Janata Party president J P Nadda, over various issues faced by the indigenous people of Tripura, a senior leader of the saffron party said.

Debbarma, in a Facebook post, said the Union home minister has started the process for a "constitutional solution" for the indigenous people of Tripura and an interlocutor for the process would be appointed within a specific time frame.

BJP's Northeast coordinator Sambit Patra said Shah gave a patient hearing to the issues explained by Debbarma and requested Chief Minister Manik Saha, who was also present in the meeting, to hold talks with ruling ally IPFT, along with Tipra Motha and social organisations, to find amicable solutions to the problems.

To a question, Patra, however, clarified that no discussions were held on political alliance or allocation of cabinet berths to Tipra Motha and the discussion was limited to "tribal welfare".

"We hope to find a solution to the problems of the indigenous people through a series of meetings," he said.

Tipra Motha, floated by Debbarma, bagged 13 of the 42 seats it contested in the recent elections to the 60-member assembly, emerging as the second-largest party in the House.

In a Facebook post, Debbarma said, "I thank the home minister for understanding the genuine problems of the sons of the soil. We successfully got our Bru people rehabilitated in our state after 23 years by signing the Bru accord and today we have started a huge dialogue to ensure that our survival and existence are protected. Issues such as alliance and cabinet were never discussed, only the interest of our dopha (society) was discussed." 

Debbarma, a descendant of the former ruling family of Tripura, had long been seeking a "constitutional solution" to demands by his party for a separate state of Tiprasa.

While the BJP has made it clear that it is unwilling to concede a division of the tiny northeastern state, its leadership has spoken of a willingness to give more legislative, financial and executive powers to the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC), that runs affairs in areas dominated by tribal communities. The Tipra Motha administers the council.