Agartala, Aug 25: The Supreme Court on Monday issued a notice to the Election Commission of India (ECI) and the Tripura State Election Commission, seeking immediate directions for holding the long-pending village committee elections under the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC) Act, 1994.

Tipra Motha founder and royal scion Pradyot Kishore Manikya Debbarma said he had moved the apex court a few months ago over the delay in conducting the polls.

“Despite the expiry of the tenure of the Village Committees, elections have not been held within the stipulated timeframe, thereby depriving the tribal population of their constitutional right to local self-governance. We want immediate elections,” Debbarma said.

Welcoming the court’s intervention, he added: “I thank the Honourable Supreme Court for issuing notice. Our people have suffered, and those responsible should be held accountable. Fear of losing elections cannot justify curtailing the democratic rights of the indigenous people of Tripura. I will not remain silent.”

The apex court has granted four weeks to the ECI, the Tripura Election Commission, and the state government to explain the reasons for the delay.

Elections for 587 Village Committees are long overdue, and tribal parties — including the ruling TIPRA Motha in the TTAADC — have repeatedly demanded that they be held. In July 2022, a Division Bench of the High Court of Tripura had directed the State Election Commission to complete the exercise by the end of that year, but the order was not implemented.

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