The indigenous student organization Twipra Students Federation (TSF) on Saturday called on all political parties to nominate candidates from indigenous communities for the upcoming Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC) elections in order to preserve the true spirit of the Sixth Schedule.

Addressing a press conference, TSF Vice President John Debbarma said the organization wants to send a clear message to both political parties and the people of Tripura ahead of the council polls.

“With the TTAADC elections approaching, we have reviewed the candidate list released by the CPIM and found that no indigenous candidate has been nominated. We appeal to all political parties to field indigenous candidates,” Debbarma said.

He specifically urged parties including the BJP, CPIM, Tipra Motha, Congress, and IPFT to prioritize indigenous nominees, emphasizing that the Sixth Schedule was created to safeguard the culture, identity, and political representation of indigenous communities.

Debbarma further expressed concern that nominating non-indigenous candidates could weaken the intended representation of tribal communities within the autonomous council.

The TSF leader also clarified that the organization does not support the proposal for a Tripura Territorial Council (TTC).

Referring to the recommendations of the Parliamentary Standing Committee, he said TSF supports the idea of a Tipraland Autonomous Council instead.

“Removing the word ‘autonomous’ from the proposal undermines the essence of the Sixth Schedule. The Parliamentary Standing Committee’s report should clearly mention ‘Tipraland Autonomous Council,’ and this name should be included in the 125th Constitutional Amendment Bill,” Debbarma added.