AGARTALA, Aug 9 (TIWN): Over 10 crores vote banks of Bengali community will matter to Modi Govt in this upcoming Lok Sabha poll in Bengal, Assam, Tripura, especially with the increasing Bengali vote banks of West Bengal in Mamata Banerjee’s favour since Assam’s brutal NRC draft which had unlisted around 40 lakh people along with the ongoing detention camp. After Assam NRC list was published, in Tripura all the political parties not only condemned, even BJP Chief Minister Biplab Deb also couldn’t support NRC when majority Bengali began condemnation, found it anti-Bengali drive to harass the Bengali population. Tripura indeed couldn’t find any “Nationalism” with NRC issue. In the first visit in Tripura on Thursday since the NRC was published at Assam, Assam Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma was found in uneasy condition when media asked about the significance of NRC especially in Tripura.

Himanta Biswa Sarma not only said that according to Tripura’s demography there is less need of NRC, but he further mentioned, “May be there is something going on in IPFT’s mind”.

Addressing media at BJP headquarter, Himanta Biswa Sarma said, “NRC in Assam is in just in a draft position. In our NRC, names of the many people are not there. So, going with the number it has gained a lot of attention, but the numbers will be drastically changed. So let first Assam produce a perfect and correct NRC. Then people should try to replicate or not replicate”.

“NRC in Assam just one stage is completed and on the basis of that people should not come into the conclusion but yes NRC 1951 is a nation-wide document and every country will have a document”, Sarma added.

Being asked by media, what about being implementation in Tripura, Himanta said, “Why should we talk only about Tripura ? Perhaps Assam can say proudly that here is a perfect NRC and then many State Govts can go, see and look into the NRC. Afterall we have spent few hundred crores in preparing NRC”.

When media asked whether NRC is going to ruling out in Tripura or not, the Assam Minister said, “It is not about ruling out and ruling in Tripura, but at Assam we have completed 40 % of the milestone. IPFT today may be happy with the NRC but after the final graph they may be unhappy. So, let us not jump into the conclusion, because it is just in an initial stage at there”.

When media sought clarification in BJP’s double-standard in NRC in case of West Bengal and Tripura, Himanta Biswa Sarma said, “Going through the demography of Tripura, I do not think there is a huge requirement of NRC, but at Assam it was done according to the Assam NRC. Assam NRC has been changed…….so that is a different issue, but the reason for IPFT asking it, I think there must be something in their mind