Tripura Leader of the Opposition Jitendra Chaudhury on Friday strongly criticized Congress MLA Sudip Roy Barman over his remarks regarding opposition unity and seat sharing in the upcoming elections.

Addressing reporters, Chaudhury said that the question of seat adjustment between the Communist Party of India (Marxist) and the Indian National Congress would only arise if Congress manages to save its deposit in at least one of the 28 seats in the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council elections.

His remarks came in response to allegations made by Roy Barman, who claimed that the CPI(M) was not sincere about defeating the Bharatiya Janata Party and suggested that the Left party should withdraw its candidate from the Dharmanagar by-election.

Reacting sharply, Chaudhury said that Congress has a very weak organizational presence in the tribal council areas. “Let Congress first prove its strength by saving its deposit in at least one of the 28 seats in the TTADC elections. Only then can discussions about seat sharing with CPI(M) be considered,” he said.

At the same time, Chaudhury acknowledged that the Congress remains a major national political party and that its strength is important for restoring democracy in the country. However, he added that it is unrealistic to expect Congress to contest every seat in Tripura.

Referring specifically to the Dharmanagar Assembly constituency, the Opposition leader claimed that Congress has virtually no organizational base there. According to him, the party lacks workers and does not have a significant vote bank in the constituency.

Chaudhury also pointed out that during the last Assembly election, Congress failed to appoint polling agents at many booths, whereas the CPI(M) ensured the presence of polling agents across booths in the constituency.

The exchange highlights growing tensions between opposition parties in Tripura over strategy and coordination in contests against the ruling BJP.