AGARTALA, April 16 (TIWN): At a time, when the media and the political circles were busy discussing Chief Minister Manik Sarkar’s alleged patronage of chit fund company Rose Valley , the foxy leader raising the Brigadier B K Ponwar issue is seen as a cover up step to drive the media attention away from the troublesome issue, thinks the political think tanks here. Using the election rally platform as a mean to flare up a new issue, the veteran leader raised the issue of the alleged involvement of the then Brigadier BK Ponwar in the ADC election of 2000. It may be mentioned here that Brigadier B K Ponwar was in charge of Assam Rifles in Tripura at that time. According to the allegations leveled by the Chief Minister, Brigadier Ponwar helped the INPT, IPFT and Congress to capture power in the ADC election in 2000 by being soft on the militant group NLFT and not taking any action in rescuing the kidnapped CPI(M) leaders during the election. The opposition Congress here took up the issue and challenged the chief minister to substantiate his allegations with proofs. The leader of opposition in the state assembly Sudip Roy Barman gave 24 hours’ time to prove the allegation.

But the left party was not able to give any documentary proof in support of the allegation except claiming that Brigadier Ponwar was removed by the then BJP government at the centre from Tripura and the former did not get any promotion afterwards in his service.

Political analysts here believe that the Chief minister raised the Ponwar issue only to divert attention from the Rose Valley issue associating the Chief Minister. It may be mentioned here that the chief minister of the only left ruled state of the country was on back foot when the opposition made a hue and cry about the alleged patronage of the chief minister for various chit fund company including the Rose Valley company.

Though the latest allegation raised by the CM was successful in deviating the attention from the Rose Valley issue, the Ponwar issue has given rise to another controversy which will trouble the left party in the coming days as it will have ramifications in various circles, thinks the political analysts.   

Meanwhile, the Congress have further termed the action by the CM as antinational and tagged the left chief minister as antinational. The Congress has sent a copy of the CD showing the video footage of the said ADC election rally at Khumulwng where Manik Sarkar alleged the nexus of Brigadier Ponwar with INPT to the Assam Rifles Headquarter in Shillong, to Home Ministry in New Delhi seeking actions.