Tripura Chief Minister Says Harvard University is in London

AGARTALA: Tripura Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb is in the news again. This time, the Chief Minister, while addressing a gathering at Tripura Central University on February 16, said that the prestigious Harvard University is in London.

The Chief Minister made the statement while saying that a city or place can be known or be famous for its universities, citing Cambridge and Harvard universities as examples.

He said, "When we say England or London, in our mind the picture of Cambridge University and Harvard University automatically will come."

While Cambridge University is in England, in the county town of Cambridgeshire, almost 90 kilometres from London and Harvard University is also not located in London. Harvard University is located in Massachusetts in the United States of America which is regarded as one of the oldest and prestigious universities in the world, established in 1636.

The Tripura Chief Minister often finds himself in hot waters due to his statements. Last week, Biplab Deb mentioned that the Bharatiya Janata Party is planning to form governments in the neighbouring countries of Nepal and Sri Lanka. His remarks stirred up a controversy with the Tripura Opposition demanding clarification from the Central BJP leadership regarding the statements made by the Tripura CM in a public meeting.

Chief Minister Deb's statement about Sri Lanka and Nepal did not go down too well with the countries. Nepal Foreign Minister Pradeep Gyawali said that formal objection from the country has been conveyed. While Sri Lanka Election Commission Chairman Nirmal Punchihewa said that the country's electoral law does not allow any overseas political party or group to work within Sri Lanka.

Last year, Chief Minister Deb found himself in the news again after saying that Amazon rainforest is in Africa. In actuality, the Amazon rainforest is located in Brazil and extends into Colombia, Peru and other South American countries.

In July 2020, the Chief Minister faced controversy again after making an objectionable comment about the Jatt community. A 50-second clip had surfaced online where Deb can be heard saying that Jatts belonging to Haryana are muscular but lack brains. He then goes on to compare the Jatts with Bengalis and said that the Bengalis are known across India for their intelligence.

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