Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha on Sunday issued a public apology after inadvertently referring to the Indigenous People’s Front of Tripura (IPFT), the ruling BJP’s alliance partner, as an outlawed group during a political rally in poll-bound Bihar.
The incident occurred on Saturday at a rally in Ramnagar, Bihar, organized to mark the filing of nomination papers by two BJP candidates. While addressing the gathering, Saha mentioned that members of the National Liberation Front of Tripura (NLFT), All Tripura Tiger Force (ATTF), and IPFT had surrendered to lead normal lives, unintentionally grouping the BJP ally with banned militant outfits.
Acknowledging the error, Dr. Saha took to Facebook on Sunday to clarify his statement and apologise. “While addressing in Bihar (on Saturday), I inadvertently referred to IPFT like NLFT and ATTF. As soon as the matter came to my knowledge, I called up IPFT president Prem Kumar Reang and tendered my apology for an unintentional mistake,” he wrote.
Political observers noted that the Chief Minister’s quick clarification and direct outreach to IPFT leadership were aimed at preventing misunderstandings within the alliance ahead of critical elections.
