Sudip Roy Barman, believed to be close to Trinamool Congress leader Mukul Roy, visited Delhi and his visit paved a swarmroom for speculations, nevertheless, he did not meet the central leadership of the BJP. According to sources, the president of the Bharatiya Janata Party, J.P Nadda himself had a meeting with Barman on Wednesday. And as soon as Barman returned, buzz brewed that the cabinet of Biplob Dev is going to be expanded. According to sources, the expansion process will be completed by July 15.
When the new Assembly in Tripura was formed, nine ministers from the BJP-IPFT alliance went to the cabinet. And at present, there are 6 ministers in the council. In mid-2019, Health Minister Sudip Roy Barman was removed from the cabinet. So, several questions arise, as to whether Sudip Roy Barman would be bequeathed with the ministry again, or, is this expansion policy of the BJP just to please the agitated camp?
According to sources, BJP’s all-India general secretary BL Santosh came to Tripura and asked Biplob Dev to expand the cabinet. He demanded a full cabinet to deliver services to the people on time. He also said that it is being heard that MLA Sudip Roy Barman should be included in the cabinet again. But, it is not known how much Biplob Dev has agreed to this.
Meanwhile, Barman arrived in Delhi on Wednesday after visiting Assam. Although Barman told the media that this was a family excursion, sources close to him revealed that he met BJP president JP Nadda too. Tripura in-charge Binod Sonkar was also present at the time, the sources said. Four IPFT delegates also reached Tripura on Wednesday. They reportedly spoke with Nadda for 45 minutes.
It is heard that they are also looking for another minister in the cabinet. So there is a lot of speculation about this new expansion. Much of the political equation depends on whether Barman or someone from the IPFT will be included in the cabinet, and whether that would tantamount to keeping the protesters in the party? Not only that, a four-member delegation of the BJP’s ally IPFT in Tripura also had a private meeting with Nadda on Wednesday, sources said. This could be the reason why BJP national president Nadda has decided to go to Tripura soon.