Agartala, Dec 14: Tipra Motha Party (TMP) founder Pradyot Kishore Manikya Debbarma on Sunday asserted that the decision on the script of the Kokborok language rests solely with the Tiprasa community.
Responding to Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha’s recent statement advocating the development of an indigenous script for Kokborok instead of the Roman script, Debbarma said that matters related to language and examinations must be decided by the indigenous people themselves.
In a video message shared on social media, the TMP chief said no outsider has the authority to dictate which script Tiprasa students should use while writing examinations. Without naming the chief minister, he questioned the objection to the Roman script and argued that leaders opposing English due to colonial history should then avoid English-medium education for their own children.
Debbarma cited neighbouring Assam as an example, stating that students in Karbi Anglong are permitted to write their tribal language using the Roman script. He questioned why similar flexibility should be denied to Kokborok speakers in Tripura.
Drawing a historical parallel, Debbarma referred to the language movement in erstwhile East Pakistan, where attempts to impose Urdu over Bengali led to mass protests and eventually the formation of Bangladesh, warning against the consequences of forcing linguistic choices.
The TMP leader also criticised the BJP’s Janajati Morcha rally held on Saturday, claiming that attendance at TMP’s block-level programmes was significantly higher than the ruling party’s state-level events. He said that while the BJP may control administrative power, Tipra Motha enjoys grassroots support among the Tiprasa people.
Reacting to Chief Minister Saha’s assertion that the BJP would win all 28 seats in the upcoming Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC) elections, Debbarma challenged the party to prove its claim at the ballot box.
Elections to the TTAADC, currently administered by the Tipra Motha–Congress alliance, are scheduled to be held early next year.
