Tripura Chief Minister Prof. Dr. Manik Saha on Thursday said the NDA alliance comprising the BJP, Tipra Motha Party and IPFT will contest the upcoming Village Committee (VC) elections together and emerge victorious.

The Village Committee elections under the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC) are scheduled to be held on September 28.

The nomination process began on September 1, with September 8 being the last date for filing nominations. Scrutiny of nominations was conducted on September 9, while September 11 is the last date for withdrawal of candidature.

The elections will be held in 587 Village Committees, covering 2,634 constituencies and 4,597 seats.

Speaking about the alliance arrangement, Saha said discussions had been held at both the state and central levels, including in New Delhi, to finalise seat-sharing among the alliance partners.

“We have held alliance talks. The alliance partners also held discussions in Delhi. BJP never leaves its alliance partners. This time, for the Village Committee elections, we have decided that the NDA alliance comprising BJP, Tipra Motha and IPFT will contest the elections together,” he said.

The Chief Minister said a committee comprising representatives of the alliance partners had been formed to oversee the seat-sharing process and that discussions were continuing at various levels.

“Talks were held at both the state and grassroots levels regarding seat sharing. Yesterday night also, discussions were held. After the withdrawal process is completed today, we will be able to say how many seats each of the alliance partners, including BJP, Tipra Motha and IPFT, will contest. There is nothing to worry about,” Saha said.

He said the seat-sharing discussions had taken place in a peaceful atmosphere and expressed confidence that the NDA alliance would win the Village Committee elections.

“A committee was formed from both sides and meetings were held on seat sharing. This time, the NDA alliance will win the Village Committee elections,” Saha said.

On the possibility of joint campaigning by the alliance partners, the Chief Minister said there was no issue with the parties campaigning together, although the final decision would be taken by the committee overseeing the alliance arrangements.