In line with their earlier announcement to contest the upcoming Tripura assembly polls jointly, the Congress and the CPI-M-led Left parties on Saturday organised a joint rally in Agartala, demanding a stop in the pre-election violence and ensuring free, fair, transparent elections to the 60-member Tripura assembly on February 16.
Tripura witnessed such a joint rally for the first time by the two parties — considered arch political rivals since 1952 — in over seven decades-old electoral history.
Four-time Tripura Chief Minister and CPI-M politburo member Manik Sarkar, party’s state Secretary Jitendra Chowdhury, Tripura state Congress President Birajit Sinha, AICC Tripura in-charge Ajoy Kumar, lone Congress MLA Sudip Roy Barman (who was earlier with BJP), his father and former Chief Minister Samir Ranjan Barman, AICC secretary Szarita Laitphlang and many other leaders of the two parties led the rally.
Displaying banners and placards with ‘My Vote, My Right’, ‘Stop Poll Violence’, thousands of opposition Congress and Left Front leaders, members and workers took out the rally with thousands of national flags.
