Tipra Motha chief Pradyot Debbarma quits active politics

Pradyot Kishore Manikya Debbarma, Tripura’s royal scion and founder of TIPRA Motha Party (TMP), a partner in the Bharatiya Janata Party-led government in the State, quit active politics on Wednesday (October 7, 2026).

His announcement came a day after the TMP registered a decisive victory in the Village Committee elections of the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC).

TIPRA is short for Tipraha Indigenous Progressive Regional Alliance.

“Today, after much thought and considerable pain, I am making a clear and final decision. I am stepping away from active politics. I will no longer hold political office or participate in day-to-day political activity,” Mr. Debbarma wrote in a letter addressed to the people of Tripura.

He said the decision was not a temporary withdrawal but a deeply personal choice made after years of service and reflection. “I know what I am leaving behind. But I also know that I have reached a point where I must choose my health, my family and my own peace of mind,” he wrote.

Mr. Debbarma founded the TMP in 2019, soon after resigning as the State president of the Congress, a party his royal family had been associated with for decades. His party won 18 of the 28 seats in the TTAADC in the 2021 elections and retained power in 2026 by bagging 24 seats.

The TMP joined the BJP-led coalition government headed by Manik Saha in 2024, a year after winning 13 of the 60 Assembly seats to become the second-largest party in Tripura.

Mr. Debbarma said his political journey had gone through many difficult moments, such as the implementation of the Bru settlement, when his party leaders helped restore dignity, hope and a sense of belonging to thousands of tribal people.

He cited the struggle for the tripartite Tiprasa Accord among the Centre, the Tripura government and the TMP in March 2024 as another difficult phase. The accord’s clauses seek to amicably resolve all issues of the State’s people relating to history, land and political rights, economic development, identity, culture and language.

“When I founded the TMP, many smaller groups were fighting for the same cause, but separately. I believed our strength was always there; what we needed was unity. We built the TMP not just as a political party, but as a movement to unite our people and make the Tiprasa voice heard,” Mr. Debbarma wrote.