The President of ruling BJP in Tripura, Rajib Bhattacharjee, will take oath as Rajya Sabha member on Tuesday.
Official sources said that Rajya Sabha Chairman Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar would administer the oath of office to Bhattacharjee, who was elected to the Upper House on September 3 after defeating CPI-M candidate and former MLA Sudhan Das in the by-election.
While Bhattacharjee secured 47 votes in the 60-member Tripura Assembly, Das got just 10 votes.
The lone Rajya Sabha seat in the state fell vacant after former Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb quit following his election to the Lok Sabha from the Tripura West parliamentary seat.
Bhattacharjee (53) was appointed Tripura BJP chief on August 25, 2022, replacing incumbent Chief Minister Manik Saha, who became the state President in January 2020 and was holding the party chief's post even after assuming the office of the Chief Minister on May 15, 2022.
A Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) loyalist for the past 36 years, Bhattacharjee had unsuccessfully contested last year’s Assembly elections from Banamalipur.
Two previous BJP Rajya Sabha members from Tripura – Manik Saha (2022) and Biplab Kumar Deb (2022-2024) – could not complete their six-year term as Upper House members. Saha quit his Rajya Sabha membership after becoming the Chief Minister in May 2022.
After his election to the Rajya Sabha on September 3, Bhattacharjee expressed his gratitude to BJP's central leadership, saying that he is also thankful to 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 the Rajya Sabha. I would try my best for the all-round development of Tripura and welfare of all sections of people in the state,” Bhattacharjee said.
The ruling BJP has 33 members in the Assembly while its allies Tipra Motha Party (TMP) has 13 and the Indigenous People's Front of Tripura (IPFT) has one legislator. The Congress, which has three MLAs, abstained from voting alleging “violence in the recent panchayat elections".
Agartala MBB Airport gets new domestic air cargo terminal
The state transport minister Sushanta Chowdhury on Monday inaugurated the domestic air cargo terminal here at Agartala MBB Airport and said that the airport will soon receive the tag of international airport.
Court sentences four Bihar residents to 10 years RI
Six years after four persons from Bihar were detained for smuggling 29.5 kg of cannabis from Agartala in the Humsafar Express, the Additional Sessions Judge Court, Dharmanagar, North District of Tripura, on Monday convicted them and sentenced them to ten years of rigorous imprisonment.
Pradyot calls for respect to traditional heads amid temple land dispute
Tipra Motha Party founder and royal scion, Pradyot Kishore Manikya Debbarma, has urged the government to acknowledge and respect the authority of Samajpatis (traditional heads) and Chantai (priests) in matters concerning temple development projects.
29 Bangladeshi nationals, seven touts held in Tripura
The Border Security Force (BSF), Tripura, has enhanced vigil and intensified its domination along the international border and detained 29 Bangladeshi nationals and seven Indian touts in last four days.
J.P. Nadda holds meeting with Tripura BJP leaders; discusses party-related issues
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) national president J.P. Nadda on Sunday held an important meeting with Tripura's state unit leaders including Chief Minister Manik Saha and discussed various party affairs.
One body recovered from Telangana tunnel on day 16 of rescue operation
Rescue workers on Sunday - the 16th day of the operation - pulled out the body of one of the eight missing persons from the partially collapsed SLBC tunnel in Telangana’s Nagarkurnool district after the cadaver dogs from Kerala identified the spot for presence of human remains under the rubble.
FM says GST rates to be reduced further, rationalised; Congress demands overhaul
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has said that Goods and Services Tax (GST) rates will be reduced further as the process of rationalising tax slabs is nearing completion.
'Anti-incumbency is an issue of the past now': J.P. Nadda hails PM Modi's leadership in Tripura rally
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) national president J.P. Nadda on Sunday said that the political culture in India has changed after Narendra Modi became Prime Minister, adding that people earlier used to talk about the anti-incumbency factor against the government.