Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha has asserted that he will be the face of the BJP in next year’s Assembly elections in the State.
Dr. Saha is contesting the Assembly bypoll from the Town Bardowali constituency on June 23. He asserted that he would continue to hold the Chief Minister’s position and appealed to people not to fall prey to rumours over him being replaced.
Addressing a rally on Sunday night, Dr. Saha said the entire nation is watching the Assembly bypoll. “Don’t believe in rumours. I have been made the Chief Minister and it is not a temporary arrangement,” he said. Dr. Saha, who was elected to the Rajya Sabha from Tripura in April this year, was sworn in as Chief Minister on May 15, a day after his predecessor Biplab Kumar Deb resigned.
He was made a candidate in the Town Bardowali constituency as per his wishes, party sources said. However, he is facing a tough fight from Ashish Kumar Saha of the Congress, who has won from his home turf in the last five Assembly elections and never seen defeat in electoral politics.
Reaching out to voters
The Chief Minister is spending hours campaigning in the semi-urban constituency every day and getting acquainted with the voters in his first election since joining politics less than a decade ago.
Prominent party leaders and some Ministers are working hard to ensure that he emerges victorious.
Dr. Saha is facing a certain level of anti-incumbency in the Congress bastion, but his stature as the Chief Minister and the BJP’s extra focus on the constituency will make sure that he wins, according to political analysts.
Dr. Saha has also promised development and welfare initiatives for the Assembly constituency.
