Ex-Tripura CM Biplab Deb elected to Rajya Sabha

The seat fell vacant after Manik Saha resigned to contest the polls after being made the Chief Minister of Tripura.

TN National Desk

Updated Sep 22, 2022, 23:36 IST

Former Tripura CM and BJP leader Biplab Kumar Deb

Photo : PTI

Agartala: Former Tripura chief minister Biplab Kumar Deb was on Thursday elected to the Rajya Sabha seat in the state. The victory in the byelection to the state's lone Rajya Sabha seat was anticipated given that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) enjoys a comfortable strength in the Tripura Assembly.

Taking to Twitter Deb expressed his gratitude towards the BJP and its allies for electing him as the Rajya Sabha MP. "Thank you so much Hon’ble CM @PemaKhanduBJP Ji for your wishes and encouraging words.

Under the leadership of Hon’ble PM Shri @narendramodi ji, we will serve the people and take NorthEast to newer heights of progress," he said in a tweet. "With the blessings of Mata Tripurasundari, I will continue to serve the beloved people of Tripura till my last breath," he said in a Facebook post.

Lone Congress MLA abstains from voting

In the 60 member Tripura Assembly the BJP has 36 seats and they secured 43 votes in the RS polls. The BJP's alliance partner Indigenous People's Front of Tripura (IPFT) has 7 MLAs is in the state Assembly. It may be noted that the the CPM has 15 members in the House while Congress has only one. According to local media reports, the lone Congress MLA Sudip Roy Barman did not cast his vote. The CPM members voted for Saha.

Deb defeated fine former finance minister Bhanulal Saha. The Rajya Sabha seat fell vacant after Manik Saha was appointed as the chief minister of Tripura to replace Biplab Deb as the CM.

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