Tripura’s political scene heats up after Jitendra Chaudhury’s remark

Leader of the Opposition in Tripura Assembly, Jitendra Chaudhury, sparked a row by stating that "taller a person, dumber he is", with the ruling BJP demanding his public apology claiming it was a jibe at former chief minister Biplab Kumar Deb, who had courted controversies several times for his remarks during his tenure.

At six feet, Deb is taller than other politicians of the state.

Addressing a party function in South Tripura's Harina on Sunday, Chaudhury, who is also the CPI(M)'s state secretary and politburo member stated, "The more in height a person is, the more of a fool he is." His remark was seen by the BJP as an ostensible jibe at West Tripura MP Deb, who was the chief minister from 2018 to May 2022.

Tripura Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare Minister Ratan Lal Nath on Tuesday demanded a public apology from Chaudhury for allegedly making "objectionable and derogatory" remarks against Deb and other BJP leaders.

Addressing a press conference, Nath said, "The way LoP Jitendra Chaudhury targeted former chief minister Biplab Kumar Deb at a party programme in South Tripura on Sunday over his height is unacceptable and objectionable. Not only Deb, Chaudhury also branded the BJP as a 'cheat' (batpar) and said that there is another cheat in Assam, who was once a health minister and is now the chief minister." "There is no doubt that Chaudhury targeted Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma. Sarma is one of the best-performing CMs in the country," he said.

It seems Chaudhury is not mentally stable, he remarked, exhorting the CPI(M) leaders to arrange treatment for their leader immediately.

Nath alleged that Chaudhury has failed to deliver as the leader of the House and is trying to mislead the people by raising baseless issues.

"We had a leader of the opposition like Nripen Chakraborty of the CPI(M) who did justice to his chair but Chaudhury has failed to continue that legacy. He failed to raise people's issues in the assembly which caused harm to the common people," he said.

"Therefore, we demand that Chaudhury seek public apology for making objectionable and derogatory remarks against our leaders and the party," he added.

When contacted, Chaudhury on Tuesday downplayed the agriculture minister's demand for a public apology for his alleged objectionable remarks against BJP leaders.

"He (Nath) himself is mental... the minister needs good treatment to get rid of his mental illness. He always speaks about irrelevant and baseless issues. I don't see any logic to pass any comment on the minister's statement," Chaudhury said.