People are leaving Congress, because they were not heard: Pradyot Bikram

"They (Congress) have lost people in Assam, lost Jagan Reddy in Andhra Pradesh and Jyotiraditya Scindia in Madhya Pradesh, lost me in Tripura. Hemant Biswa Sarma also left the party which was a heavy loss," Pradyot Bikram, former Tripura Congress chief told ETV Bharat's Saurabh Sharma in an exclusive interview.

New Delhi: Pradyot Bikram, the scion of Tripura’s Manikya dynasty and former Congress state chief in an exclusive interview with ETV Bharat said that he left the party because he was not heard by the leadership. He also said that the party should think about the people it has lost.

"They (Congress) have lost people in Assam, lost Jagan Reddy in Andhra Pradesh and Jyotiraditya Scindia in Madhya Pradesh, lost me in Tripura. Hemant Biswa Sarma also left the party which was a heavy loss," said Bikram.

After quitting Congress, Bikram launched a regional party, The Indigenous Progressive Regional Alliance (TIPRA) Motha in December 2019 when the CAA bill was passed and the Northeast belt rose up in protests. He even won the elections to Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous Districts Council (TTAADC) in April 2022.

Q. Why do you think that Congress is now failing in almost all the elections?

A.That's because the Congress party needs to relook at the people they've lost. They've lost people in Assam, lost Jagan Reddy in Andhra Pradesh, Jyotiraditya Scindia in Madhya Pradesh, and lost me in Tripura. Hemant Biswa Sarma also left the party which was a heavy loss. So the Congress party needs to understand why these people are quitting. Some obviously have left for personal gains and some like me left because we were not heard in the party. So the Congress party needs to inject fresh youth into its fold.

Q. Was there any friction between you and Rahul Gandhi as you were very close to him once and then suddenly left the party?

A. I am still close with Mr. Gandhi. He is a nice and wonderful person and a Gentleman. I have no problem with him. Personally, I've no problem with any of them and speaking of Mr. Gandhi and Mrs. Priyanka Gandhi, I've always held the Gandhi family in high regard and will continue to do so. Let me tell you, I have no friction with Amit Shah, I've worked with him very closely on rehabilitation in 2020. Similarly, I've no problem with Mr. Sitaram Yechury, he is a wonderful person. I've no problem with Mamata Banerjee. My mother was with her in the Parliament. I've immense respect for her too.

Q. How many seats you are planning to contest in the upcoming Assembly Elections, 2023?

A. As of today, we've done our groundwork in 35 out of 60 seats and that number can also increase depending on how the groundwork is and the movement is going on.

Q. As per the 1930 census, the population of local Tripuris was about 80 percent and the rest 20 percent were of Bengali origin. What compelled the demand for a Tipraland?

A.The fact is that because of the influx and because of discrimination of Hindus in East Pakistan and then subsequently Bangladesh, there has been a major problem of influx into Tripura. We sympathize and also understand the pain of the Hindu Bengalis. Actually, they suffered immensely at the hands of various fascists and communal forces in East Pakistan. So we are telling the Government of India not to send them back to Bangladesh, protect them, and let them live peacefully but give us constitutional protection so that our culture, tribals, the Indigenous people, our language, way of life, and identity is not under threat. So we are asking for constitutional safeguards and not asking to remove any rights of Hindu Bengalis or any other religious community in Tripura. All I say is that there has to be a constitutional solution for our problems and not a financial or some kind of package deal. And according to us, the safeguards would be the creation of a Tipraland.

Q. Has anybody from the Centre or from any political party contacted you over this matter?

A.The Congress party has come out openly and has said that our demand is 'Constitutional' and not 'anti-national'. The Communist Party (CPIM) has said that our demand is a legal one but they may not agree with it. They've said that this demand is not anti-national but falls within the parameters of the constitutional solution. There are BJP members who have admitted in private that our demands need to be addressed. It's a matter of time before they agree and talk to us.

Q. Can you please tell us the names of those members?

A.Sorry. I think it would be wrong on my side to give out their names. But we have been contacted by various tribal leaders. Let me tell you that in 2018, the BJP itself had come out with a letter asking for a 'State Council' for the Indigenous Tripuris within the state of Tripura, a separate state council that is just falling short of a 'Separate State'.

Even the BJP, when they were in opposition and raised this demand because they also understand that there has been gross injustice meted out with the indigenous Tripuris. But I am saying again that it should not be at the cost of harming the Bangalis or any other community. It should empower the tribals and the indigenous without disempowering any other community.

Q.Don't you think that this may divide Tripura into ethnic lines, further fuelling tension in the North-eastern belt?

A. Not at all. There are 23 percent non-Tripuris in the Tripuris inhabited area and I have not asked for removing those people out of this area. We have Muslims, Buddhists, Christians, Bengalis, and Manipuris and they all should remain within this area with equal rights and dignity. We are not a xenophobic, fascist force. Ours is a constitutional demand based on economic and political lines.

Q.Can we expect a 'coalition' with any other party as you yourself pointed out that Congress has supported you and a few BJP leaders spoke to you in private?

A.We will not go for any coalition or some sort of an alliance with any other party till they give us in writing that they will support our demand for Greater Tipraland within the parameters of the Constitution. If they don’t agree, we will fight ourselves for the rights of 14 lakh Tiprasis. Whoever agrees with us, we will talk to them.

Q.TMC is also eyeing winning the Assembly Elections in 2023? How are you planning to give them a tough challenge?

A. Every political party has the right to contest the elections. TMC indeed is a secular party, so we have no ideological barrier with them. Right now, they've not established themselves in the areas where we are strong. TMC is largely concentrating in pockets where BJP is strong.

Q.You were with Congress till 2019 and were close with the top leaders. What made you quit the Party?

A. That is because at the height of CAA, I was of the opinion that we should oppose the CAA and Congress party's General Secretary at that time who is now no longer in the party Luizinho Falerio (now a TMC member) was of the opinion that we should not rake up this CAA because he believed that it could upset the non-Muslims and non-Tiprasis people.

I was of the opinion that we cannot have an agitation in Assam, Meghalaya, Delhi, and no agitation in Tripura. We cannot be hypocrites. Then, I was told not to speak up for my people which prompted me to leave the party, so that I can stand for the Tiprasis.

Q. What's your reaction to the recent change of Chief Minister by the ruling BJP in Tripura?

A.BJP needs to answer this. For more than four years, Biplab Ji was the party's face in Tripura, and just months before the upcoming Assembly Elections, he was removed. This is an admittance by the BJP that their government has not been up to the mark. All the BJP supporters are former Congress workers. So this will put BJP on a very sticky wicket. Why have they removed their poster boy (in Tripura) and replaced him with a former Congressman!

Q. If some kind of an arrangement is made, can we expect you to join BJP?

A.Anyone who is willing to expect our demand in writing, we are willing to talk to them. And if not, we'll continue to raise our demand within the constitutional framework. Let me be very clear that my movement is not for becoming an MP or a Chief Minister nor do I have any national political ambition. I do want to become a political person till the day I die. God has given me enough and I just want to stand up for my people who have suffered immensely.