Tripura election results: BJP-IPFT alliance ousts Left, Narendra Modi calls it an ideological win

The Bharatiya Janata Party has ousted the Communist Party of India (Marxist) government in Tripura. The Election Commission on Saturday declared BJP the winner in 35 of the 59 seats contested in the Assembly polls, and its ally, the Indigenous People’s Front of Tripura, won eight constituencies.

The CPI(M)-led Left government, which was reduced to 16 seats after the elections, had governed Tripura for 25 years, with Chief Minister Manik Sarkar at the helm since 1998.

9.45 pm: Odisha BJP workers celebrate outside the state party headquarters.

9.35 pm: Manik Sarkar says the real information was “morphed during counting” in his Dhanpur stronghold. The Indo-Tibetan Border Police and Tripura Police escort him to Agartala from his constituency.

8.10 pm: BJP wins 35 seats and leads in one. Its ally, the Indigenous People’s Front of Tripura, wins eight seats. The CPI(M) tally stands at 13, and it leads in three constituencies.

7 pm: BJP National President Amit Shah gets a rousing welcome at the party headquarters.

6.50 pm: BJP wins 32 seats and leads in three, CPI(M) wins 11 and leads in five, and the Indigenous People’s Front of Tripura wins eight, according to the Election Commission of India.

6.47 pm: “I do not have the figures but I think the elected team in Tripura is the youngest ever team,” claims Modi. “Some of them were even scared that would be rejected on the grounds of their age. Such young candidates successfully won people’s confidence.”

6.41 pm: Prime Minister Narendra Modi says, “The North East has today come forward to lead India on the path to development.” He is addressing party workers at the BJP headquarters in New Delhi.

5.29 pm: BJP workers continue to celebrate the party’s performance in Tripura.

5.28 pm: BJP wins 30 seats and leads in five, CPI(M) wins 11 and leads in five, and the Indigenous People’s Front of Tripura wins seven and leads in one.

5 pm: BJP wins 26 seats and leads in nine, CPI(M) wins 11 and leads in five, and the Indigenous People’s Front of Tripura wins seven and leads in one. This gives the BJP-IPFT alliance a considerable margin with 33 seats in the 60-seat Assembly.

4.40 pm: The BJP-IPFT alliance has won 27 seats and leading in 16. The Left Front has won 10, and is ahead in six seats, according to the Election Commission.

4.23 pm: Amit Shah says the Left has been wiped out completely. “Jahan tak Left ka sawaal hai, ye siddh ho chuka hai ki Left desh ke kisi bhi kshetra ke liye right nahi hai (As far as the Left is concerned, it has been decided that the Left is not right for any region),” says Shah.

4.18 pm: BJP National President Amit Shah says the victory in Tripura was possible because of Narendra Modi’s policies. “In 2014 Narendra Modiji had said western side of the nation has developed a lot but the same has not reached the eastern side yet. He immediately started his Act East Policy,” Shah tells reporters.

4.17 pm: The Election Commission has declared winners in 43 seats. The BJP-IPFT alliance has won 26 seats and is leading in 17 more. The Left Front has won eight seats and is ahead in eight.

3.59 pm: Prime Minister Narendra Modi calls the Tripura results a historic as well as an ideological victory. “It’s a win for democracy over brute force and intimidation,” Modi says on Twitter. “Today peace and non-violence has prevailed over fear. We will provide Tripura the good government that the state deserves.”

3.50 pm: The BJP-IPFT alliance has won 23 seats and leading in 20. The Left Front has won eight, and is ahead in as many seats, according to the Election Commission.

3.44 pm: The CPI(M) says the BJP used money and other resources to influence the elections. “The BJP was able to consolidate all the anti-Left votes virtually appropriating the erstwhile main opposition, Congress,” says the party. It, however, thanks the people of Tripura who voted for CPI(M). “We assure the people of Tripura that it will continue to champion the cause of all sections of the working people and uphold tribal-non tribal unity.”

3.40 pm: The CPI(M) says that the verdict of the people of Tripura will lead to the formation of a BJP-IPFT alliance government in the state. “After 25 years in government, the Left front has been voted out of office,” says the party, according to ANI.

3.29 pm: Here’s how vote share percentage of different parties changed from 2013.

3.18 pm: The Election Commission has declared winners in 17 seats. The BJP-IPFT alliance has won 12 seats and is leading in 31 more. The Left Front has won five seats and is ahead in 11.

2.50 pm: The BJP-IPFT alliance has won eight seats and leading in 33. The Left Front has won four, and is ahead in 14 seats, according to the Election Commission.

2.40 pm: As the Left Front is all set to lose its bastion in Tripura, Assam minister and BJP leader Himanta Biswa Sarma says Chief Minister Manik Sarkar has just three options before him, PTI reports. “He can go to West Bengal, where the CPI(M) still has some presence,” he says. “He can go to Kerala, where the party is in power and will rule for three more years or he can go to neighbouring Bangladesh.”

2.28 pm: The Election Commission has declared winners in nine seats. The BJP-IPFT alliance has won seven seats and is leading in 34 more. The Left Front has won two seats and is ahead in 16.

2.26 pm: BJP workers celebrate in Trivandrum, Kerala, as the party is set to win in Tripura.

2.07 pm: The BJP-IPFT alliance has won three seats and leading in 38. The Left Front has won one, and is ahead in 17 seats, according to the Election Commission.

1.55 pm: IPFT nominee Prem Kumar Reang has won the Kanchanpur seat by a margin of 4,131 seats, says the Election Commission. He defeated CPI(M) candidate Rajendra Reang.

1.39 pm: BJP workers celebrate in Agartala.

1.34 pm: Chief Minister Manik Sarkar is leading in Dhanpur constituency by 3,278 votes, according to the Election Commission.

1.14 pm: The BJP chief in Tripura, Biplab Kumar Dev, could be the party’s chief ministerial pick, reports NDTV. He is a former volunteer of the Rastriya Swayamsevak Sangh. However, party general secretary Ram Madhav says they are yet to decide on a name. “Our parliamentary board will meet in the evening and take a call,” says Madhav.

12.58 pm: The Indigenous People’s Front of Tripura candidate, Mevar Jamatia, has won from the Asharambari constituency. He defeated CPI(M) nominee Aghore Deb Barma by 6,987 votes, shows the Election Commission data.

12.22 pm: Official trends are now available for 58 seats in Tripura. The BJP-IPFT is ahead in 38 while the Left Front is leading in 20 seats.

12.20 pm: Bharatiya Janata Party leader Himanta Biswa Sarma says the party will form the government in Tripura, according to PTI. “We will be winning 44-45 seats in Tripura. We will form the government.” Sarma credits the results to the party workers in the state. “People were fed up with the Manik Sarkar government, which has been ruling the state for more than two decades, and wanted to get rid of the CPI(M) rule.” He adds that the alliance with the IPFT also helped the party. “Tribal votes in Tripura is around 35% and they voted for the BJP lock, stock and barrel.”

11.50 am: According to the Election Commission, the BJP-IPFT is ahead in 38 seats. The Left Front, on the other hand, is leading in 19 seats.

11.42 am: BJP National General Secretary and in charge of the party’s activities in North East Ram Madhav called it “a revolutionary result” and attributed it to the blessings of Tripura Sundari Mata, the voters and the hard work of Narendra Modi and party workers.

11.34 am: Official trends are now available for 54 seats in Tripura. The BJP-IPFT is ahead in 36 while the Left Front is leading in 18 seats.

11.21 am: BJP leader and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Adityanath says the party is all set for a “historic win” in Tripura. “I would like to congratulate PM [Narendra] Modi, Amit Shahji and our party workers... Important day in Indian politics,” he adds.

11.06 am: According to the Election Commission, the BJP-IPFT is ahead in 33. While the BJP is leading in 26 seats, its ally IPFT is ahead in seven seats. The Left Front, on the other hand, is leading in 19 seats.

10.50 am: Official trends are now available for 47 seats in Tripura. The BJP-IPFT is ahead in 31 while the Left Front is leading in 16 seats.

10.44 am: Chief Minister Manik Sarkar is leading in Dhanpur constituency by 1,682 votes, according to the Election Commission.

10.34 am: BJP workers celebrate in Agartala as early trends show the party is set to make massive gains.

10.27 am: Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju says the trends point to a “new political direction”. He adds, “It will have an effect on national politics as well. We are confident of forming the government.”

10.23 am: Official trends are now available for 38 seats in Tripura. The BJP-IPFT is ahead in 23 while the Left Front is leading in 15 seats.

10.13 am: According to the Election Commission, the BJP-IPFT alliance is ahead in 16 seats while the Left Front is leading in 13.

10.10 am: BJP leader Himanta Biswa Sharma says the trends were encouraging. “I am hopeful and confident that [the] BJP will form the government in Tripura,” he told ANI.

10.03 am: Communist Party of India leader Brinda Karat says the Left Front will win in Tripura. “We are very confident, let more rounds of counting complete, our leads are going to get much bigger,” she said.

9.53 am: According to the Election Commission of India, the Left Front is leading in seven seats while the BJP-IPFT alliance is ahead in five.

9.43 am: The Left Front is leading in 32 seats while the BJP-IPFT alliance is ahead in 21, according to News18. In Tripura, a party or alliance will need at least 31 seats to form the government.

9.38 am: BJP National General Secretary Ram Madhav lauds the party’s performance. “Seeing the earlier trends, I feel that in Tripura BJP is going to do very well...The three results of North East are going to be very good for BJP,” he told ANI.

9.31 am: Chief Minister Manik Sarkar is leading from Dhanpur and BJP state unit president Biplab Kumar Deb is leading from Banamalipur seat, PTI reported quoting the Election Commission of India.

9.15 am: Early trends indicate that the Left Front is ahead in 23 seats while the BJP-IPFT is leading in 19 seats, according to News18.

9.10 am: Sunil Deodhar, who is in charge of BJP’s activities in Tripura, said the Assembly elections is more about removing someone from power. “It is a fact that we are riding on a strong anti-CPI (M) wave rather than a pro-BJP wave,” he told News18. “It’s more of a CP(M) hatao sentiment than a Modi lao one. And it’s because of an incompetent chief minister, his misrule and bad governance.”

8.52 am: Early trends indicate that the Left Front is ahead in 22 seats while the BJP-IPFT is leading in 16 seats, according to News18.

8.46 am: Additional Chief Electoral Officer of Tripura Tapas Ray said the results could be out in five hours. He added counting is on in 59 halls and a three-tier security system has been put in place.

8.32 am: Early trends show it is a neck-and-neck battle. The Left is leading in seven seats while the BJP-IPFT is ahead in five. The Congress is leading in one seat, according to NDTV.

8.27 am: Chief Minister Manik Sarkar is leading in Dhanpur constituency, according to NDTV.

8.22 am: Early trends show the Left Front leading in five seats while the BJP-IPFT alliance is ahead in four seats, according to News18.

8.14 am: The Bharatiya Janata Party is hopeful about forming the next government in Tripura. “People want change,” BJP Tripura unit president Biplab Kumar Deb told NDTV. “People strongly wish for a BJP government in Tripura. It is certain that the BJP will form the next government in Tripura.”

8.03 am: Counting begins amid tight security.

8.01 am: Here is a look at seats that parties have won in Assembly elections since 1967.

7.55 am: Additional Chief Electoral Officer of Tripura Tapas Ray said adequate security measures have been put in place. “General observers and police observers were appointed for all the counting halls,” he told PTI.

7.30 am: Here is a look at the big electoral issues in the state, along with the main contenders and a quick recap of the politics.

7.22 am: In 2013, the CPI(M)-led Left alliance won 50 seats out of 60. The 10 remaining went to the Congress, and the BJP did not win any. The last election had also recorded a massive voter turnout – 93.57%. Women voters had outnumbered men by 2.13%.

7.20 am: Counting is set to begin at 8 am.