Union Home Minister Amit Shah arrived in Agartala in a special Indian Air Force (IAF) aircraft on Friday evening amid a series of protests over his alleged derogatory remarks against BR Ambedkar during the winter session of Parliament. He is scheduled to participate in other programs at the 72nd Plenary Meeting of the North East Council (NEC) starting from Saturday.
Tripura Chief Minister Manik Shah, Lok Sabha MP Biplav Kumar Deb, BJP State President Rajeev Bhattacharya and others welcomed Shah at the Maharaj Veer Bikram Airport. The team shifted to a private hotel in the city, where Shah is learned to be meeting with senior leaders of the BJP and its ruling alliance partners in Tripura—Tipra Motha and the Adivasi Tribes Morcha of Tripura.
Earlier, Shah inaugurated the BGF accommodation at Akhaura Integrated Check Post (ICP) before coming to Tripura.
“The SSB (Armed Border Force) has a glorious history of 61 years of service, protection and friendship… Since its inception in 1963, the SSB has worked to instill a sense of patriotism and belonging to the nation in the border villages and later served. To protect the 2,450 km open border with Nepal and Bhutan for years, when the border is closed, the responsibility of the Border Security Force decreases, but when the border is open, the responsibility increases many times… They have stopped drug, human trafficking, arms smuggling and anti-national activities with high efficiency,’ said the Home Minister in virtual. . Opening ceremony.
He also said that Bihar and Jharkhand have become completely “Naxal-free” and added that SSB jawans had a “crucial role” in the achievement.
During his visit to Tripura, the Home Minister is scheduled to lay the foundation stone of BJP’s state headquarters on Sunday.
The upcoming four-storied building will have modern facilities like auditorium, small meeting hall.
Meanwhile, hours before the home minister’s arrival, the Tripura Tapashili Jati Samanvoy Samiti – a front outfit of the opposition CPI(M) – held protests across the state demanding Shah’s resignation from the Union Cabinet for his comments about Ambedkar.
The Tripura Pradesh Congress Committee also held a protest rally at Chaumuhani in Agartala demanding Shah’s resignation.
Ahead of the home minister’s three-day visit to Tripura, the state police and the Border Security Force (BSF) have been put on high alert and tight security has been maintained along the state’s India-Bangladesh international border.
Six Bangladeshi nationals, including two children and two women, were arrested in a private guest house in Khowai district on Friday.
They were residents of Feni district of Bangladesh and they tried to hide in Bangladesh with the help of some Indian brokers.
During the preliminary investigation, they have admitted that they went to Delhi in search of employment a few months ago and illegally purchased documents such as Aadhaar card, PAN card.
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