Agartala: A day before Tripura assembly polls, Chief Minister Dr Manik Saha exuded confidence that the BJP would return to power with a thumping majority. Terming BJP's victory in 2018 "historic", Dr Saha said that the Opposition wouldn't be able to show their face in public after the results.
"We will get more seats than we did in 2018. After Tripura results, Opposition won't be able to show its face in public," Dr Manik Saha said in an exclusive interview with NDTV.
He also accused the Opposition of lying and trying to mislead the voters. The 70-year-old said that he is waiting for the day when the state will have no Opposition.
"The Opposition lied to the voters and tried to mislead them. I am waiting for when Tripura will be Opposition-less," Dr Saha said.
The Left Parties had ruled Tripura for 30 years since 1978, with just a brief interruption in 1988 when the Congress came to power. In 2018, the BJP won 36 seats in the 60-member assembly, while its ally IPFT (Indigenous People's Front of Tripura) won eight seats. BJP is contesting 55 seats in this election and IPFT is contesting five seats.
The Congress and Left parties have entered into a pact for the assembly polls, while Tipra Motha, chaired by Bikram Manikya Debbarma, the Tripura royal scion, is fighting on its own.
Dr Saha said that the BJP will win the elections again and secure more seats than they did in the 2018 polls.
The elections to the Tripura assembly will be held on February 16. The counting of votes in Tripura will be held on March 2 along with Nagaland and Meghalaya, which will also go to the polls later this month.