The Tipra Motha Party organised a massive rally at Swami Vivekananda Maidan on Thursday, signalling the launch of a pan-North East political initiative, One North East (ONEO), aimed at uniting indigenous communities and countering the dominance of national parties in the region.
Senior leaders, including Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad Sangma, Tipra Motha founder Pradyot Kishore Debbarman, Assam People’s Party founder Daniel Langthasa, former BJP spokesperson Mmhonlumo Kikon, and Indian Gorkha Janashakti Front leader Ajay Edwards, addressed the gathering.
Debbarman recalled the hurdles faced by regional parties, contrasting them with the ease national parties enjoy in organising rallies. “Congress and CPIM conducted rallies in Agartala without any hassle. But when the Tiprasa party wanted to organise a mass rally, we faced objections… The more you hit me, the stronger we shall bounce back. We may not get Greater Tipraland in the next five or ten years, but one day we shall get it for sure if we can ensure ‘Thansa’ (unity) within ourselves. We achieved Thansa in Tripura first and now this slogan of unity will spread across the North East,” he said.
Sangma emphasised that internal divisions among indigenous groups weaken the region. “Our identity, culture and linguistic practices are still alive because our ancestors pulled off a great fight. We come from different hills of the North East, but what makes us one is our indigenous identity… division is synonymous with weakness and disintegration means weak and ignored voices raised in pursuit of a common solution,” he said.
Also read: Pradyot Debbarma calls for united indigenous front in Northeast
He added, “Our blood boils when our girls and youth are discriminated against on the basis of ethnicity in the mainland. One North East came into existence to become a voice for all of them.” Sangma also made a cryptic reference to Pradyot Debbarman being a future CM face, signalling potential electoral ambitions for Tipra Motha under the ONEO banner.
Other leaders highlighted the pitfalls of national party dominance. Tripura Forest Minister Animesh Debbarma criticised how regional partners are treated as temporary allies, citing the BTC elections where a national party sidelined its regional partner post-defeat. Hemchandra Singh and Daniel Langthasa warned that the greatest threat to indigenous communities is internal division, sectarianism, and neglect of cultural identity.
Kikon framed the struggle in terms of language and heritage, declaring, “Anybody who wants to erase our language, culture and identity – we will fight them till my last breath.” He lauded the Tiprasa people for their generosity, recalling their historic support during famines, and promised solidarity from the wider North East indigenous community.
The rally marked a decisive push for ONEO, emphasising that regional forces must unite to ensure political relevance, cultural preservation, and protection of indigenous rights. Tipra Motha, though part of the BJP-led coalition, appears poised to contest future assembly elections independently under the ONEO identity, with a message of unity and self-determination for the North East.
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