Agartala: Demanding the elevation of the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC) into a separate state for the indigenous people under Article 3 & 4, members of Tipraland State Party (TSP) on Tuesday staged a 12-hour-long sit-in hunger strike at Salka Kami area of Baramura hills in West Tripura district.

Speaking with reporters, TSP president Chittaranjan Debbarma said that the hunger strike was staged demanding a separate state for the indigenous people and rehabilitation for Bru displaced people living in relief camps of Kanchanpur.

“The main purpose and objective for holding this hunger strike in view of our demands for the elevation of TTAADC to Tipraland state, a full-fledged state under Article 3 of the Indian Constitution and scrapping of CAB. Tripura is the only state, which got affected by the influx of refugees from erstwhile East Pakistan, now Bangladesh. This is the only state affected in terms of the dimension of the state. This is the reason we are demanding Tipraland and scrapping of Citizenship Amendment Bill,” he said.

“The influx continued illegally in the state after the partition. If it continues like that and CAB is passed then nobody will be illegal immigrants in Tripura any more. From being a sharp majority to sharp minority, we have been reduced so much so that a time will come when indigenous people will be like the Jarawas of Andaman and Nicobar Islands. This is the only alternative for us to demand a separate state,” Debbarma said.

Speaking further Debbarma said, Tripura should not be included in the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill.

On Bru issues, the president of TSP said that the displaced Bru people are not being rehabilitated and on the other hand, their rations were being stopped which is not acceptable. “Justice should be done immediately with them with proper rehabilitate for Bru displace people immediately,” he added.