Tripura CPI-M expels 13 top leaders

Agartala, Jul 10 (UNI) The CPI-M today received a severe blow after 13 top leaders, including former Minister and MLA Sudhir Das, were expelled for destabilising the unity of the party and working against a party nominee in the Assembly elections held in February.

The party in a statement said while two top leaders were expelled from the state committee, others would be suspended for three to six months.

The statement said the state leadership tried to resolve the factional feud among a section of senior leaders in Kamalpur of Dhalai district but failed and this compelled the party to take disciplinary action against them.

According to party leaders all the accused had sabotaged the party's official candidate and former Minister Ms Bijoy Laxmi Sinha in the February 23 Assembly elections and later attacked party offices and houses of her followers.

The statement issued after a two-day state committee meeting, asserted that the senior leaders had investigated the entire matter before taking any disciplinary action, the first of its kind in the history of CPI-M in Tripura.

Meanwhile, reacting to the party's decision, two stalwarts-- Sudhir Das and Ranjit Ghosh, who were expelled from the party for an interim period, said, '' We were in no way involved in any kind of anti-party activities and injustice is being meted out to the dedicated work force of the party. This would definitely have an impact on state politics.'' UNI BB KK AM BD1858