The Indigenous People's Front of Tripura, an ally of the ruling BJP in Tripura, on Wednesday threatened to launch a movement unless an "inter-ministerial modality committee" was formed within the next three months and also demanded another cabinet berth in the Biplab Kumar Deb ministry.
The "inter-ministerial modality committee" would study the socio-economic and cultural issues of the indigenous people of the northeastern state, IPFT vice-president Ananta Debbarma told reporters in Agartala.
He claimed that the Centre had, on January 8, announced plans to form the committee after an IPFT delegation met Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Rajnath Singh in this regard.
"We are waiting to be updated about the inter-ministerial modality committee, to be formed by the ministry of home affairs. If it does not start functioning within the next three months, we shall launch a democratic movement," Ananta said.
Demanding one more cabinet berth for the IPFT, he said, "There is a provision for a 12-member cabinet. Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb has filled up nine positions and kept three vacant. We were given two berths in the cabinet; we can get one more."
In the 60-member Tripura Assembly, the BJP has 36 legislators, the IPFT eight and the CPI(M) 16.
To a question, Ananta said the demand for a separate "Twipraland" had emerged in the state in the late 1990s over the issue of backwardness of the tribal people, living mainly in the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC) areas.
"We cannot just turn away from our demand; but now, it remains to be seen how the modality committee studies our problems and how the Centre addresses our grievances," he said.
IPFT president N.C. Debbarma is the revenue minister and party general secretary Mevar Kumar Jamatia has been allotted the tribal welfare portfolio in the BJP-IPFT alliance government in Tripura.
Asked if the IPFT did not trust its own ministers as regards tackling the issue of backwardness of the tribals, Ananta said, "It is not a question of trust. The government will act in its own way and we will work in our own way. Ours is a political party and we shall continue with our movement till our goal is achieved."
The demand points to relations being frayed between the two parties. On Monday, three people were injured in a clash between activists of the BJP and IPFT in South Tripura district. Before the recent Assembly elections, the BJP had declared that further division of Tripura was not possible; however, after the formation of the coalition government, the IPFT renewed its statehood demand.