more-inThe ruling BJP and its ally Indigenous Peoples Front of Tripura will contest the by-elections for the three-tier panchayat separately, fuelling speculation about fissures within the fledgling coalition, which in March ended the 25-year-long Left rule in the State. Large-scale resignationsThe seats fell vacant after large-scale resignations by elected public representatives since the BJP- IPFT government came to power on March 9. Mr. Nath said 2,980 candidates would contest on gram panchayats seats, 157 on panchayat samiti seats and 18 on zilla parishad seats. IPFT general secretary Mangal Debbarma too announced that his party was contesting the bypolls alone and will field candidates against the BJP. Tripura has two Lok Sabha seats.

Source: The Hindu September 07, 2018 18:22 UTC