A Correspondent
Agartala: Pradhan and Upa-pradhan of Fultali gaon sabha under Chandipur block of Unokoti district approached the court challenging the notification issued by the Block Development Officer dismissing their panchayat membership for violating the whip issued by Bharatiya Janata Party.
Pradhan Pramila Sinha, Upa-pradhan Mridul Sinha and one of the members Ranjit Sinha in their petition submitted before the High Court of Tripura has challenged the validity of the whip issued by their party as it was ‘incomplete’.
In the nine-member panchayat, the Bharatiya Janata Party won seven seats while the Congress won two. BJP nominated Abha Sharma and Atish Malakar for the posts of Pradhan and Upa-pradhan respectively. A section of the BJP members refused to accept it and filed Pramila and Mridul as rebel candidates.
In the election held on August 16, both the rebel candidates won with the support of two Congress members Fulrani Sinha and Shibani Malakar. The BDO issued a showcause notice and both the Pradhan and Upa-pradhan replied accordingly citing faults in the whip issued by the party.
However, the BDO refused to accept their reply and issued a notification dismissing their membership. Both the Pradhan and Upa-pradhan described the action taken by BDO as unlawful and approached the court.