Agartala, Sep 03, 2024, TRIPURA TIMES Desk

Agartala, Sep 03: President of Pradesh BJP- Rajib Bhattacharjee was elected to Rajya Sabha on Tuesday.

Bhattacharjee defeated CPI-M candidate and former MLA Sudhan Das while the three MLAs of Congress boycotted vote voting alleging “violence in the recent three-tier panchayat elections’.

In the 60-member Tripura Legislative Assembly, Bhattacharjee secured 47 votes and Das got 10 votes.

The ruling BJP’s strength in the Tripura Assembly is 33 and its partner in NDA Tipra Motha Party (TMP) has 13 legislators and the Indigenous People's Front of Tripura (IPFT) has one MLA.

The lone Rajya Sabha seat in Tripura fell vacant after former Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb quit the seat following his election to the Lok Sabha in the recent polls from the West Tripura Parliamentary Constituency.

The by-election was held on Tuesday and immediately after the polling, the votes were counted and the result was declared by the Election Commission officials.

Chief Minister Dr. Manik Saha and other ministers and MLAs greeted Bhattacharjee after his election to the upper house. 

Bhattacharjee also conveyed his gratitude to the central leadership as well as BJP allies TMP and IPFT.

“I am grateful to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP President J.P. Nadda, and Home Minister Amit Shah for giving me this opportunity to represent Tripura in Rajya Sabha. I would try my best for the all-round development of Tripura and welfare of all section people of the state,” the Pradesh BJP president said in his reaction. 

Bhattacharjee was appointed Tripura state BJP President on August 25, 2022, replacing incumbent Chief Minister Manik Saha, who became the BJP’s state president in January 2020 and had been holding the party post even after assuming the office of the Chief Minister on May 15, 2022.

A Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) loyalist for the last 36 years, Bhattacharjee had unsuccessfully contested last year's Assembly election from the Banamalipur constituency.