Tripura polls: Left Front to field 47 candidates, releases list

Agartala: The Left Front on Wednesday declared the names of candidates for 47 of the 60 Assembly seats in Tripura, leaving 13 seats to the Congress.

The two parties have joined hands to take on the ruling BJP in the state.

Of the total 47 seats, the CPI(M) will contest 43, while other Left partners -- CPI, RSP, Forward Bloc -- will field one candidate each, Left Front convenor Narayan Kar said at a press meet.

The front has left one seat for Independent aspirant Puroshottyam Ray Barman, an advocate and human rights activist, he said.

Eight sitting CPI(M) MLAs, including former chief minister Manik Sarkar (74), have been "relieved of" contest-related responsibilities this time.

Maintaining that the Left Front has fielded 24 new faces in the electoral fray, Kar said the poll manifesto, with plans and visions for the state, will be released soon.

CPI(M) state secretary Jitendra Choudhury, who will fight the elections from the Sabroom constituency in South Tripura district, said Sarkar will continue to guide the party.

Sarkar humbly declined to contest the elections, despite requests, Chowdhury said.

Asked about the front's failed attempt to stitch an alliance with regional outfit Tipra Motha, Choudhury, who was also present at the press meet, asserted that the Left Front will not favour any proposal to bifurcate Tripura.

"I spoke with Tipra Motha supremo (Pradyot Kishore Manikya Debbarma) yesterday and tried to explain to him that the Left Front can go to great extents to empower indigenous people. We told him that the front is in favour of according more power and autonomy to the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC).

"He, however, stuck to his demand for a separate state. The Left Front is completely against the idea of disintegrating Tripura's geography, culture and history," the senior CPI(M) leader added.