The Hindu : Trinamool seeks a foothold in Tripura

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Feb 09, 2004

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Trinamool seeks a foothold in Tripura

By Our Special Correspondent

KOLKATA, FEB. 8. The Trinamool Congress is preparing to extend its sphere of influence to Tripura and is set to forge an alliance with the Indigenous Nationalist Party of Tripura (INPT) whose links with the outlawed National Liberation Front of Tripura (NLFT) remain a contentious issue.

The Tripura Chief Minister, Manik Sarkar, told The Hindu over telephone from Agartala "it is a well-known fact that the INPT has deeply entrenched links with extremists including the NLFT which had been banned in 1997. The Centre is also aware of this." Now the INPT was trying to get close to the BJP and that could be the reason for seeking an alliance with the Trinamool, he said. "Any such alliance would be rejected by the people of the State and only expose the Trinamool."

Some Trinamool leaders met representatives of the INPT here recently "with an intention to work together in the run-up to the polls and pave the way for the INPT to become a part of the National Democratic Alliance," the Trinamool national general secretary, Mukul Roy, said.

He denied any links between the INPT and extremists saying "the INPT is a recognised party which has six MLAs in the Tripura Assembly."

Though Mr. Roy said that "there is no question of Trinamool's merger with the INPT," a section of the Trinamool leadership here did not rule out that possibility in the future.

"The Trinamool will be contesting from one of the two Lok Sabha seats in Tripura," Mr. Roy added.

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Trinamool seeks a foothold in Tripura