What Is the Demand For Greater Tipraland Statehood?

What Is the Demand For Greater Tipraland Statehood?

In This Article, ”What Is the Demand For Greater Tipraland Statehood?” we will read about TIPRA Motha, Pradyot Kishore Debbarma, Demand for Greater Tipraland, Tipraland V/S Greater Tipraland Demand, Tripura Assembly Polls, etc.

Assembly Elections 2023: Nagaland, Meghalaya And Tripura

Context of the Demand For Greater Tipraland

What Is The Issue?

• If it was the rapid rise of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) that changed the political landscape of Tripura in 2018, the buzz now, five years later, is around the TIPRA Motha chief Pradyot Kishore Deb Barma.
• Recently, the TIPRA Motha chief Pradyot Kishore Deb Barma has ruled out an alliance with any political party in Tripura without written assurance on the party’s main demand for a Greater Tipraland state for Tripura’s indigenous people.
• Recently, TIPRA Motha party also released Election Manifesto, where it said that it is committed to seek a permanent solution upholding the rights of the indigenous people of Tripura as per the Constitution of India.

When Will the Tripura Assembly Polls be Held?

Elections to the 60-member Tripura assembly will be held on February 16, and the counting of votes will be on March 2.

What is the demand for Greater Tipraland?

• Greater Tipraland is the core ideological demand of the TIPRA Motha(A NewlyEstablished Political Party In Tripura).
• The ‘Greater Tipraland’ is a demand for a separate state for tribals. The idea does not restrict only to Tripura, and seeks to also include Tripuris living in Assam, Mizoram, and Chittagong Hill Tracts of Bangladesh.
• While the core ideology of the new party brinks on ethnic nationalism, the leadership of the Motha has been careful not to project itself as an “of the tribals, by the tribals and for the tribals only” party.

What is the Current Greater Tipraland Demand?

Objective: The objective of wanting a Greater Tipraland is to carve out a new State for the 19 indigenous tribes of Tripura under Articles 2 and 3 of the Constitution.

Beyond TTAADC: In its current form, the contours of the new State would go beyond the TTAADC areas to include several other villages where the Tiprasa (indigenous people of Tripura) reside in large numbers.

Beyond State: In addition, the Motha would set up task forces to connect with the Tiprasa living in other regions of the country and the world to help them with their linguistic, cultural, social, and economic development.

Tipraland V/S Greater Tipraland Demand

Background

The demand for Greater Tipraland appears to be a rehash of the demand for Tipraland put forth by the Indigenous People’s Front of Tripura (IPFT) in 2009 after it broke away from the Indigenous Nationalist Party of Tripura (INPT). But Motha leader Jagadish Debbarma disagrees.

What was the demand for Tipraland?

• The earlier Tipraland demand was to carve out a separate State for the tribal population of Tripura from the TTAADC areas.

What is the present demand for Greater Tipraland?

• The present demand goes beyond the TTAADC areas and includes at least 36 more villages where the tribal population is in the range of 20 to 36%.
• This, in no way, would exclude the nine per cent Muslim population and the majority Hindu population coming within these limits.

Who Is Demanding For Greater Tipraland Statehood?

• TIPRA Motha: The Tripura Indigenous Progressive Regional Alliance or TIPRA Motha, a regional political party led by royal scion Pradyot Kishore Debbarma, seeks a separate state for the indigenous people of Tripura.
• Tribal Outfits: Several tribal outfits and indigenous communities of the north-eastern state of Tripura are also Demanding For Greater Tipraland Statehood.
• Election Factor: So, the statehood demand may affect results in 20 assembly seats, where tribals hold considerable clout electorally, in the 60-member House.

Why Tribal Outfits Demanding Greater Tipraland Statehood?

• The indigenous communities in the region is demanding a separate state arguing their “survival and existence” is at stake.
• Among the 19 notified Scheduled Tribes in Tripura, Tripuris (aka Tipra and Tiprasas) are the largest.
• According to the 2011 census, there are at least 5.92 lakhs Tripuris in the state, followed by Reangs (1.88 lakhs) and Jamatias (83,000).

Also Read: Naga Ceasefire Agreement

About TIPRA Motha

• Regional Political Party: Tipraha Indigenous Progressive Regional Alliance (TIPRA) Motha is a regional political party floated by former royalty Pradyot Bikram Manikya Debbarma, after leaving the Congress.
• Contesting on Greater Tipraland Issue: The party swept the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC) elections held in April last year, winning 18 of the 28 seats over the ‘Greater Tipraland’ demand in a direct contest with the ruling BJP-IPFT alliance.
• King Maker: Debbarma, who is addressed widely as Maharaj, is seen as holding the key to whoever comes to power in the tiny northeastern state of 28 lakh voters and 60 assembly seats.
• Strong Presence in the State: The Motha, which is contesting 42 seats, is expected to do well in the 20 tribal-dominated Assembly seats within the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council where it has been in power since 2021. The offer of a pre-poll alliance by both the BJP and the Left-Congress alliance shows that the Motha is a force to reckon with.

The History Behind Tribal V/S Non Tribal Conflict In Tripura

• According to the 1941 Census, the ratio of population of tribals and non-tribals in Tripura was almost 50:50.
• However, by the next Census, the tribal population was reduced to a little over 37% due to the huge influx of refugees from East Pakistan.
• Between 1950 and 1952, nearly 1.5 lakh refugees had entered Tripura for shelter.
• The flood of refugees led to bitter differences and, eventually, conflict between the tribals and the non-tribals escalated in 1980 and took the shape of armed insurgency.
• The demand for autonomous regions or separate statehood during this time metamorphosed to sovereignty and independence.
• However, after a political truce was reached between the State and the rebel groups, the demand for statehood was revived.

Why there is a rising demand for Greater Tipraland?

• Political Willingness by Debbarma: Debbarma has cleared that his party(TIPRA Motha) is willing to forge an alliance with any national party that provides a constitutional solution to the demand of the indigenous people of the Tripura, who form one-third of the state’s estimated 40 lakh population and live in the tribal council area, which constitutes two-thirds of the state’s territory.
• Extension Of Tripraland Demand: ‘Greater Tipraland’ is essentially an extension of ruling partner Indigenous Peoples Front of Tripura’s demand for ‘Tipraland’, a separate state for tribals by carving out the TTAADC area.

Tripraland vs Greater Tipraland

• The new demand of Greater Tipraland seeks to include every tribal living inside and outside the TTAADC area.
• The ‘Greater Tipraland’ idea does not restrict only to Tripura, and seeks to also include Tripuris living in Assam, Mizoram, and Chittagong Hill Tracts of Bangladesh.

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