People's Democracy

THE blatantly seditious speech made by extremist-turned-politician and INPT chief Bijoy Kumar Hrangkhawl at Geneva will go a long way in enlightening the state’s population and unmasking the heinous alliance of the Congress with this political wing of an outlawed extremist organisation.

The speech also betrays some distortion of history. For instance, the speech sought to whitewash the gross human rights violations by NLFT and ATTF gunmen who are killing and kidnapping the state's innocent men and women, children and the aged.

Secondly, in a pro-imperialist distortion of history, Hrangkhawl said it was the refugee influx from East Pakistan into Tripura and the pro-Bengali pressure group in the then Regency administration of the tribal queen that led to the "annexation" of Tripura in 1949. He forgets the fact that it was the imperialist conspiracy in collaboration with the power-hungry Congress and Muslim League leaders that thrust the 1947 partition on India, due to which a huge mass of refugees was compelled to take shelter in the eastern states. This was what reduced the tribals into a minority in Tripura.

A significant fact about his speech was that it coincided with the Pakistan president General Musharraf’s Bangladesh visit. He also copied Musharraf who dubs the blood-shedding Kashmiri militants as "freedom-fighters."

The speech augurs ill for the stability and security of the north-east region. A large part of this region borders Bangladesh, with tiny Tripura having 856 km long border with that country. In fact, the landlocked Tripura is hemmed in from three sides by that country and terrorists have since long been using Bangladesh as their sanctuary.

Taking a strong stance in favour of sovereignty and national integrity, the CPI(M) alerted the people of Tripura including the Congress rank and file about the treachery of the power-hungry Congress leaders who have openly joined hands with anti-national forces just to oust the Left Front. In this context, the CPI(M) made it clear that it favours of more and real autonomy for the tribal and backward areas within the framework of Indian unity.