Agartala: Two women leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) were injured in a clash between two factions of the ruling party over the appointment of a village chief in Boxanagar, a border area in Sepahijala district, Tripura.
Following the incident, BJP supporters blockaded the main road leading to Boxanagar, demanding justice for the injured women leaders.
Those injured were taken to the Tripura Medical College in Hapania, Agartala, for treatment.
As the process of three-tier panchayat elections concluded, the oath taking ceremony of the elected Panchayat members began all over the state and subsequently the elected members propose the names of the Panchayat chiefs and deputy chiefs who are popularly called Pradhan and Upa-Pradhan. The person who get majority votes from the elected members assumes the chair.
A similar event was being held at Boxanagar’s Veluarchar Panchayat on Tuesday. Initially, it was decided that Minati Sarkar Deb would be appointed Pradhan of the Panchayat. The local leaders claimed the MLA Tofajjal Hossain had promised her that she would certainly get the charge after elections.
However, after the swearing in ceremony, the name of Mani Barman was proposed for the post and it was later approved by the MLA as well. Soon after the officials of the block left the spot after the oath taking, a faction of the ruling party which was backing Minati Deb Sarkar protested the move. They even said that the local MLA had cheated them.
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The protests invited response from the rival faction and eventually a clash ensued. During the scuffle, Minati Deb Sarkar and one of the other women wing leaders suffered injuries. They were immediately shifted to hospital for better treatment. Police sources said that two persons had been initially taken to Bishalgarh hospital but considering their health condition both of them were moved to Tripura Medical College.
Later, a section of BJP supporters staged a road blockade on the main road in the Boxanagar area and demanded the resignation of the MLA. A team of police and administrative officials reached the site of the road blockade to convince the protestors.
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