Assembly constituency belong to the minority community and
the constituency was a CPI (M) stronghold
AGARTALA, Sept 10: BJP’s Tafajjal Hossain, who wrested the
minority-dominated Boxanagar Assembly seat in Tripura’s
Sepahijala district from the CPI (M) in the by-election by more
than 30,000 votes is now the new poster boy of the saffron
party.
More than 66 per cent of the voters in the Boxanagar Assembly
constituency belong to the minority community and the
constituency was a CPI (M) stronghold.
Hossain’s win in the minority-dominated Boxanagar Assembly
constituency in Tripura is seen as politically important for the
BJP, who are accused of ignoring the interest of minority
people in the northeastern state.
Tafajjal Hossain polled 33,849 votes in the by-election to the
Boxanagar seat while CPI(M)’s Mizan Hussain got only 3,884
votes.
For the first time in 25 years, the Communists lost their
stronghold Boxanagar. Riding on the aggressive campaign led
by chief minister Manik Saha and his cabinet colleagues, the
BJP defeated the CPI (M) in its bastion.
“For the past 40 years, the people of Boxanagar were fooled by
the CPI (M) and Congress. Today the people have taken
revenge for the ill-treatment meted out to them”, Hossain told
reporters after winning the by-election from Boxanagar.
“In the 2023 February election, the electors were misled by the
Communists. This time we have been able to remove
misconceptions about BJP. The result is with us as the CPI(M)
candidate lost his deposit”, he said.
Hossain said people voted in large numbers for the BJP to teach
the CPI (M) a lesson.
“In the assembly election in February, 2023, the CPI (M) won
the seat by misleading people of the minority community. But
this time, they voted for the BJP in large numbers to teach the
CPI (M) a lesson. The CPI (M) will be reduced to a party of the
past soon,” he claimed.
“The CPI (M) knew they would lose the election. That’s why it
boycotted the counting,” he said.
The by-election to the Boxanagar constituency was
necessitated by the death of CPI (M) MLA Samsul Haque. The
CPI (M) had fielded Haque’s son Mizan Hussain to garner
sympathy vote in the by-election but failed to win the seat.
(PTI)