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2 Tripura BJP MLAs who quit party join Congress, claim more coming

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Dissident Tripura MLAs of the ruling BJP — Sudip Roy Barman and Ashis Kumar Saha, who resigned from the Assembly and the party on Monday, Joined the Congress in New Delhi on Tuesday. AICC in-charge for Tripura, Nagaland and Sikkim, Ajoy Kumar in his tweets said that Roy Barman and Saha joined the Congress in presence of party leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra.

Tripura Pradesh Congress President Birajit Sinha and former state President Gopal Roy and other leaders including Ajoy Kumar were also present when the two leaders joined Congress at the residence of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in Delhi.

Both Sinha and Roy Barman while separately talking to IANS over phone, claimed that more than five BJP MLAs would join the Congress after March. “The BJP MLAs who are intended to join would have to complete certain organisational and technical matters before joining the Congress. Besides the BJP MLAs, a large number of saffron party leaders and workers would also join the Congress as everyone is disillusioned with the party (BJP),” Sinha, a former minister, said.

Roy Barman, a former Minister, and Saha had told the media in Agartala before leaving for Delhi that they have also sent their resignation letters to the BJP’s state President Manik Saha. Roy Barman said: “The BJP government led by Deb utterly failed to deliver. An autocratic rule has been prevailing in the state. People are in serious distress. We want to work for the people as we are unable to do this while remaining in the BJP.”

Roy Barman and Saha were earlier in Congress before joining Trinamool Congress (TMC) in 2016 and then to BJP next year (2017).

Earlier, BJP MLA Ashish Das after openly criticising the saffron party and its leadership including Chief Minister, joined the TMC on October 31, 2021 following which he was disqualified from Tripura Assembly by Speaker Ratan Chakraborty on January 5 (this year).

Two other BJP MLAs — Diba Chandra Hrangkhawl and Burba Mohan Tripura – also went to Delhi on Monday along with Roy Barman and Saha but their political positions have not yet officially been announced. BJP, on the other hand, downplayed the resignations of Roy Barman and Saha and said that their quitting from the Assembly membership would not create any constitutional crisis in the state.

State BJP spokesman Nabendu Bhattacharjee said that it was expected that Roy Barman and Saha would leave BJP. “They have been openly criticising the Chief Minister and other party leaders. Their resignation from the Assembly and the party has no importance to BJP,” Bhattacharjee told the media.

Roy Barman, Saha and three other BJP MLAs — Ashish Das, Diba Chandra Hrangkhawl and Burba Mohan Tripura — in August last year held a big gathering in Agartala which was attended by many local BJP leaders and workers. They had also met BJP’s National President J.P. Nadda and other central leaders and Ministers and Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and apprised them about the “misgovernance in Tripura and Chief Minister’s authoritarian style of work”.

To curb the rebellion in the party and to set the governance right, several central party leaders led by BJP’s North East Zonal Secretary (Organisation), Ajay Jamwal, had visited the state several times. In the presence of the central party leaders, three BJP MLAs — Ram Prasad Paul, Sushanta Chowdhury, Bhagaban Chandra Das — were on August 31 last year inducted into the Tripura cabinet in its first cabinet expansion after the BJP-IPFT (Indigenous People’s Front of Tripura) alliance assumed charge in March 2018.

The open dissent and internal dispute in the ruling BJP began after Roy Barman, who was holding the Health and Information Technology departments, was sacked in May 2019 following differences with Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb.

Maharashtra

171 Maharashtra Tourists Safe, Search On For Missing Woman In landslide-hit Uttarakhand

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Mumbai: A woman tourist from Maharashtra has remained untraceable since landslide and flash floods hit Uttarkashi district of Uttarakhand, state Disaster Management Minister Girish Mahajan said on Saturday.

The minister’s office in a statement said that 171 out of the 172 tourists from Maharashtra, who were stranded in the Dharali area, could be contacted, and they were all confirmed safe.

The Statement

“Only one person, Kritika Jain, is still missing, but the authorities are trying to locate her. Efforts are underway to establish contact with the tourist, and the Uttarakhand State Emergency Operations Centre (SEOC) has been instructed to conduct a search for her,” the statement said.

Of the 171 tourists from Maharashtra, 160 are safe at various locations – 31 are in Matli, six in Jolly Grant, and 123 in Uttarkashi – and have continued their journey as planned. The remaining 11 tourists are safe in Harsil and will be airlifted to safety, it stated.

Mahajan is overseeing the rescue operation on-site in Uttarkashi to ensure the safety of tourists.

The Maharashtra State Emergency Operation Centre (SEOC) is in constant touch with its Uttarakhand counterpart, the district control room, the district emergency operations centre in Uttarkashi, and the National Emergency Response Centre in New Delhi.

According to the statement, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis is monitoring the situation.

As per information shared by Uttarakhand authorities, the airlift of tourists stranded in Harsil was scheduled for Saturday morning. Army, NDRF, SDRF and local rescue teams are operational in Dharali.

The landslide and floods have damaged roads and disrupted communication networks. Efforts are underway to restore connectivity and basic infrastructure.

A satellite phone has been deployed by IGP Rajeev Swaroop, and the Army has been alerted for immediate response.

The Maharashtra SEOC is coordinating rescue arrangements, updating information, and assisting the concerned families, the statement added.

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National News

‘Hurt By US President Donald Trump’s Tariff Attack, PM Modi Now Posing As Farmers’ Defender,’ Says Congress Leader Jairam Ramesh

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New Delhi: Congress leader Jairam Ramesh took a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for attempting to portray himself as a champion of Indian farmers, after being “hurt and subdued” by recent criticism from US President Donald Trump.

Ramesh recalled the 2020-21 farmers’ protests against the three farm laws, alleging that the Prime Minister mocked the agitators by calling them “protest enthusiasts” in Parliament. He claimed that over 700 farmers lost their lives during the protests, yet the Prime Minister expressed no regret or sympathy.

“Five years ago, there was a time when the Prime Minister, in Parliament, mocked the protesting farmers by calling them ‘protest enthusiasts.’ More than 700 farmers lost their lives during the protests against three black, anti-farmer laws, but not a single word of pain, regret, or sympathy came from the Prime Minister’s mouth for them. Farmer organizations are still demanding a legal guarantee for MSP, calculated by adding 50% profit to the total cost of production (C2), along with concrete debt relief. The Prime Minister remains completely silent on these demands, even though these same issues were raised by India’s former Vice President,” he posted on X.

“In November 2019, the Prime Minister was fully prepared to include India in the RCEP trade agreement, which could have caused significant harm to Indian farmers and dairy producers. However, due to persistent pressure from the Congress Party and farmer organisations, Prime Minister Modi had to back down at the last moment,” he added.

He further took a jibe, saying, “Now, hurt and subdued by Trump’s attacks, PM Modi is trying to present himself as the greatest champion of Indian farmers, but no one is under any illusion about this.”

On Thursday, in a message against the tariffs imposed by the United States, Prime Minister Narendra Modi asserted that farmers remain India’s top priority and that the country would never compromise their interests.

“For us, the interest of our farmers is our top priority. India will never compromise on the interests of farmers, fishermen and dairy farmers. I know we will have to pay a heavy price for it, and I am ready for it. India is ready for it,” PM Modi said while addressing the MS Swaminathan Centenary International Conference.

His remarks come amid the Trump administration doubling the tariff imposition to 50 per cent on goods from India. During trade negotiations, the United States was pushing for greater access to India’s agricultural market, especially for corn, soybeans, and cotton.

However, India has so far resisted the opening of the agricultural sector and dairy products due to concerns about domestic livelihoods and potential impacts on farmers.

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National News

28 Tourists From Kerala, Maharashtra Feared Missing After Uttarakhand Cloudburst And Landslides

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Kochi: A 28-member group of tourists, who are natives of Kerala, has gone missing after a cloudburst triggered massive mudslides in Uttarakhand, family members said on Wednesday.

Of the 28 individuals, 20 are reportedly from Kerala settled in Maharashtra, while the remaining eight are from various districts in Kerala, a relative of one of the couples in the group told the media.

She said the couple’s son last spoke to them a day ago.

“They said they were leaving from Uttarkashi to Gangotri at around 8.30 am that day. The landslides occurred along that route. We have been unable to contact them since they left,” she said.

She added that the Haridwar-based travel agency, which arranged the 10-day Uttarakhand tour, was also unable to provide any update on the group’s whereabouts.

“Their phones may have run out of battery by now. There is no mobile network in that region currently,” she said.

At least four people have been confirmed dead in the disaster that struck Dharali, an ecologically fragile region in Uttarakhand, following the cloudburst on Tuesday afternoon.

Officials said nearly half of Dharali was buried under a massive mudslide of slush, debris, and water. The village is a key stop on the route to Gangotri, the origin of the Ganga, and hosts several hotels and homestays.

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