Agartala: In an ugly political violence, unidentified miscreants set ablaze the ancestral house of former Tripura Chief Minister and Rajya Sabha MP Biplab Kumar Dev. The incident took place on January 03 night. As per reports, the miscreants armed with sharp weapons and lathi attacked public vehicles and several vehicles were set on fire.
The miscreants were allegedly supporters of the CPIM party and belonged to the Muslim community. The mob pelted stones and broke several windows of the house in the Rajdhannagar area before setting it on fire.
The police have registered a case and initiated an investigation into the matter. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has alleged that CPIM-backed goons started the attack. It should be mentioned that Rajya Sabha MP Biplab Kumar Dev every year performs rituals in the house in memory of his late father, Hirudhan Deb.
The attack comes a day ahead of rituals held yearly in memory of Biplab Deb’s father. Sources in Tripura police said that the attackers were supporters of the opposition CPI(M) party and were looking for a chance to attack the former CM’s property.
Earlier on January 03, addressing the Vijay Sankalp Rally Biplab, Deb claimed the people of Tripura wanted a change of the then Left Front Government in the State in the 2003 and 2008 elections. But leaders of the Opposition Congress then did not respect the people’s aspirations.
Addressing a Bijoy Sankalpa rally in Unakoti District’s Fatikroy area, he said the recent joint statement issued by the CPI(M) and the Congress calling for the defeat of the BJP in the 2023 elections revealed the unholy alliance between the two parties over the years.
Biplab Kumar Dev Said, “The then opposition party (Congress) was friends with the ruling party (CPI(M)), which is continuing even today.In the present day, their understanding has come to the fore as they issued a joint statement urging the people to topple the ruling BJP from power,”
“Due to well-coordinated efforts of the party leaders, people blessed the BJP to form a Government from 1.5 per cent vote share to 45 per cent vote share.” He urged party workers to reach out to CPI(M) supporters and make them aware of the work done by the BJP-led Government in the State.
Meanwhile, Tripura police have started an investigation of the incident. As per local media reports, the incident occurred when a group of pujaris reached Deb’s home in Rajdhanagar of Jamjuri in Udaipur, Tripura. The pujaris came to Biplab Kumar Dev’s house to perform the annual rituals of his late father on January 04.
The miscreants armed with sharp weapons and lathis attacked the pujaris and damaged their vehicles. Locals gathered on the spot and managed to save the pujaris. When the gathering outnumbered the miscreants, they tried to escape. Reportedly, when the locals tried to stop the miscreants, they damaged the shops and several vehicles were set on fire before fleeing.
The miscreants then attacked the ancestral house of former CM Biplab Kumar Dev and set it on fire. A police team led by Sub Divisional Police Officer Nirupama Debbarma and Additional Superintendent of Police Debanjana Roy reached the spot immediately.
So far, no one involved in the attack has been picked up by police, but investigations are ongoing and search Tripura police are carrying out search operations.
