• Abhijit Nath, NET Correspondent, Tripura 

Agartala, August 11, 2022 : Tripura’s former Health minister and incumbent Congress MLA Sudip Roy Barman sustained grievous injuries on his head once again on Thursday afternoon while returning from Jirania sub-division, about 20 KMs away from Agartala city under West Tripura district.

Apart from Roy Barman, a total of 11 Congress party workers and supporters along Tripura Pradesh Congress Working President Sushanta Chakraborty were also attacked allegedly by the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party-backed hoodlums of the Majlishpur assembly constituency.

Sources informed, Congress MLA Roy Barman and other senior leaders of the national party went to Jirania for attending ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ programme. But the local police administration of Jirania sub-division did not allow the Congress party citing breach of the law and order issues. Seeing the barrier staged by the police administration, the Congress workers blocked the road in front of Jirania School and protested against the alleged partial role of the Home department.

In a talk between police and Congress leaders, it is seen that Roy Barman was telling that the police administration is intentionally not allowing the Congress party to hold any programme in Jirania whereas the ruling BJP was allowed to hold programme for three days at a stretch till August 10 last. Roy Barman accused the police administration for working as puppets of the ruling party and disgracing the ‘Khaki’ uniform.

While addressing the gathering, Congress MLA Roy Barman said “The police is playing a partisan role and favouring the ruling party. We sought permission on August 09, but we were not allowed by the police citing grounds that the ruling BJP had prescheduled events till August 10. Today, when we reached there, the police told us that they cannot provide security. The police administration is working for their political heads.”

The former Health minister also said that he will hold a meeting of the Congress party in Jirania and Congress workers from all over the state will be transported here and resist against the BJP-backed hoodlums.

After a short while, the Congress workers cleared the road after the police personnel arrested the agitators. Police said “The Congress party workers were informed that any political event cannot be allowed due to the prevailing law and order situation in view of the ensuing Independence Day celebration events.”

At present, Roy Barman is undergoing treatment at a city-based private hospital here in Agartala.

In a reaction from local MLA of Majlishpur assembly constituency under Jirania sub-division Sushanta Chowdhury, who is also the ICA minister said “The Congress party has always been into dirty politics. They never had any intention to play fair for the welfare of common people. The Congress leaders assembled with all outsiders in this assembly constituency and no local people took part in this event of the opposition political party. When our party workers were campaigning for ‘Har Ghar Tiranga’, these intruders tried to create an unrest in Jirania. And no one was attacked at Jirania, they staged a drama by their own people to malign BJP’s image and gain sympathy from the masses of Tripura. People have understood their evil conspiracies and Congress party leaders will be rejected in the coming days.”