Agartala: In India, the separation of power is structured so that each organ of governance can act as a deterrent factor to the others in case one of them tries to gain more power.
According to several constitutional experts, it is called the doctrine of “checks and balances,” which prevents the consolidation of power in favour of one of the three major organs of governance — Legislature, Executive, and Judiciary.
For the last 11 days, Tripura has been witnessing high drama over a civil servant’s refusal to meet two elected public representatives at his residence.
The civil servant in question is the District Magistrate of Gomati, Tarit Kanti Chakma, and the two public representatives are Pradyot Kishore Debbarman, an MDC (Member of District Council) from the Takarjala segment, and Chief Executive Member of the TTAADC (Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council), Purna Chandra Jamatia.
On May 25, both leaders went to his official residence. It was Sunday. The District Magistrate, who was present at his residence, neither refused to meet them nor did he physically come out of his quarters.
Debbarman and Jamatia were informed by the security personnel posted at the entrance of the building that the District Magistrate was not willing to host them at that point in time.
Visibly upset at the treatment, Pradyot Kishore Debbarman said that he had been trying to reach out to the District Magistrate for the last one month. His calls and messages were ignored. This is why he went to the DM’s residence but had to return empty-handed.
According to Debbarman, it was a blatant disregard for the post of a democratically elected public representative.
Since then, the whole state has been under the grip of a fresh round of protests seeking the removal of the District Magistrate.
The Youth Tipra Federation (YTF), the youth wing of the Tipra Motha Party, has issued a seven-day ultimatum to the Tripura state government, demanding action against the District Magistrate of Gomati, Tarit Kanti Chakma.
Addressing reporters in Agartala on Monday, YTF President Suraj Debbarma warned that failure to act would result in large-scale agitation.
“If the government does not act within seven days, we will escalate our protest to a full-scale lockdown across the state. People still remember the Covid-19 lockdown — we will not hesitate to create a similar situation,” he said.
The youth leader also criticised Chief Minister Dr. Manik Saha for what he described as a “diplomatic and evasive” response to the issue. He even asked what was the benefit of such a post if transferring a DM is so hard for a Chief Minister.
Tensions peaked earlier in the day when thousands of YTF supporters gathered outside the Gomati DM’s office in Udaipur, staging a symbolic lockdown.
Protesters shouted slogans, breached police barricades, and locked the main gate of the office. The demonstration lasted until early afternoon, after which the lock was broken by staff.
Superintendent of Police, Gomati, Namit Pathak told reporters that the protestors were allowed to put a lock on the DM’s office to ensure that no violence took place.
Before the protests broke out, leaders of Tipra Motha in phases met Chief Minister Dr. Manik Saha and Chief Secretary JK Sinha. The leaders, including Ministers, MLAs, and MDCs, through their written memorandums, informed the CM that the DM was not cooperating with the TTAADC administration.
“The TTAADC is spread over all the districts of Tripura as it covers almost 75 percent of the state’s geographical territory. Hence, we need cooperation from civil servants working under the state administration because major schemes like MGNREGA, construction, and forest management come under the purview of the state administration.
Some of our crucial projects had been pending in the Ampi area under the jurisdiction of the DM of Gomati. He was not responding to our calls, which is why Maharaj thought the DM should be convinced through a personal interaction,” Chief Executive Member Purna Chandra Jamatia told EastMojo.
Despite repeated attempts, the DM could not be reached for a comment on the issue.
On the day of the incident, Chief Minister Dr. Manik Saha was out of Tripura. As he returned, he was made aware of the situation.
“I have asked the Chief Secretary to request an official response from the District Magistrate. The official report on the matter is still awaited. It could have been a communication gap, and I think such an incident shouldn’t have happened. We have to ensure a cordial atmosphere for the smooth functioning of governance. And no one’s reputation should be harmed,” the Chief Minister said.
Former CM Biplab Kumar Deb also urged the YTF activists to calm down, as movements don’t always lead to solutions.
On the other hand, the Tipra Motha Party and its youth wing are not willing to backtrack. The party has maintained that the District Magistrate should be removed from his present post to set an example.
It must be clarified here that Tipra Motha and BJP are allies in the BJP-led coalition government in Tripura, and BJP’s conspicuous silence on the issue has already started to create an impression that things are not going down well with the allies.
Tripura Congress MLA Sudip Roy Barman even claimed that the whole state is under the clutches of an undeclared “officer raaj.” He also called on Tipra Motha to come out clean.
“Tipra Motha has to decide on which side it will stand. Because it has been opposing the government’s silence on the issue, but at the same time, the party is sharing power with the BJP in the state. Both the moves are in stark contrast to each other. Either Tipra should withdraw support or it should stay silent and keep digesting the treatment of the BJP toward its allies,” Roy Barman said.
Tripura Leader of Opposition Jitendra Choudhury also condemned the DM’s act and described it as “arrogant behavior.” On the protests, he said, “It looks like a premeditated game of the BJP and Tipra to make sure that people remain busy in narratives that have nothing to do with real-life issues.”
On the other hand, political observers called the ongoing tussle a classic example of a battle between two important pillars or organs of the democratic governance system.
Also Read: Tokenism won’t liberate us: The invisibility of Dalits in Assam
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