Amid the by-election coming, the conflicts among the parties in Tripura are seen very frequently these days. In the allegations of political violence before the by-election in the four Assembly segments in Tripura, the state unit of the BJP lodged a complaint with the Chief Electoral Officer against Trinamool Congress (TMC) for using a photo of the Tripura State Museum in a poll advertisement without permission.
As per the allegations, the advertisement purportedly asks the voters to vote for TMC in the by-election in the coming by-election are slated to be held are Agartala, Town Bordowali, Surma, and Jubarajnagar, on June 23.
The BJP, in the complaint letter Tuesday, alleged that the TMC has violated the model code of conduct by using a government museum in the advertisement and demanded necessary action against the violators. According to the letter, the advertisement, with TMC chief Mamata Banerjee appealing to vote for the party, was published in two local Bengali dailies.
‘The background of the theme was based on the image of Tripura State Museum (erstwhile Tripura Legislative Assembly) building, under Govt. of Tripura. Use of any Govt. building of importance is prohibited for the Election Campaign. The advertisement material did not indicate any pre-certification by the State Level Media Committee,’ reads the letter signed by BJP’s office secretary Mihir Sarkar.
Reacting to the allegations, Tripura TMC president Subal Bhowmik said, ‘BJP should mention under which clause we have violated the model code of conduct. I hope that they are aware that the chief minister also violated the model code of conduct. They can raise any allegation but they cannot stop TMC.’
On May 28 this year, CPI(M) state secretary Jitendra Chaudhury demanded chief electoral officer Kiran Dinkarrao Gitte take action against the Chief Minister for alleged violation of the model code of conduct. A show cause notice was subsequently served to the CM, where he was asked to clarify allegations of mixing official work with election work and using a government vehicle while visiting North Tripura and Dhalai districts. The Chief Minister later denied the allegations.
The BJP has come under severe criticism from several opposition parties, including CPI(M), TMC, and Congress, over allegations of political violence, aiding bike-borne goons, and others. The party has denied the charges and has said the Opposition parties are spreading rumors to stay relevant