AGARTALA : Tripura Congress claims BJP supporters attacked youth leader’s homeFamily members of Sahajan Islam were physically assaulted during the attackPolice intervened to control the situation near CM’s ancestral house

The Tripura Congress has accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of attacking the house of its youth wing leader, Sahajan Islam, and beating up his family members in West Tripura district for allegedly criticising Chief Minister Manik Saha on social media.

The BJP accused the youth Congress leader of making derogatory remarks against the CM in a Facebook post and lodged an FIR against him.

 “Over 100 BJP and Yuva Morcha supporters armed with weapons entered the house of Sahajan at Shantipara on Sunday around 11 pm and ransacked the property. His parents were beaten up and his wife was physically assaulted,” Tripura Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) president Asish Kumar Saha told the reporters.

Congress leader Sudip Roy Barman rushed to the spot but faced strong protests by the Yuva Morcha supporters, another party leader said.

As the tension gripped the locality, where the chief minister’s ancestral house is situated, a strong contingent of police personnel rushed to the spot and brought the situation under control.

Sahajan, a popular Youth Congress leader, in a Facebook live, lashed out at the chief minister after a vehicle carrying cattle was detained by a mob in front of the West Agartala Police Station, and a few untoward incidents occurred during Eid Al-Adha on Saturday.

“A man, who had been extracting teeth in his entire career in exchange of money, has been made the chief minister. The police have been working in favour of a particular community,” the Youth Congress leader claimed, referring to the CM’s medical profession.

“The attack on the political leader’s house and his family members shows that mafia raj is prevailing in the state. We are under an autocratic rule. His outburst on the chief minister was a reaction to what had happened across the state during Eid on Saturday. Instead of handling the issue politically, the BJP chose the path of violence,” Roy Barman told the reporters.

The Congress demanded the arrest of those involved in the attack on Sahajan’s residence and his family members. The BJP on Monday strongly reacted to the Facebook post, claiming that it “defamed the chief minister” and lodged an FIR against the Congress leader.

 “The Congress leader has insulted our chief minister. The way he attacked the chief minister is highly objectionable. We lodged an FIR against him and demand his arrest,” Ashim Bhattacharjee, the BJP sadar (Urban) district president, said.

 Director of Land Resources and CEO of SLNA, Albert Ngullie, also addressed the event. He reiterated that Nagaland has favourable agro-climatic conditions for both Arabica and Robusta varieties and reaffirmed the Department’s long-term vision to bring 50,000 hectares under coffee cultivation by 2047.

Ngullie said the Department’s coffee mission is built on ecology, employment, and economy. Promoting coffee as an agro-forestry crop, it avoids slash-and-burn techniques and promotes sustainable land use. On employment, he said coffee offers meaningful livelihood options for youth, from plantation to retail. The Department has so far supported the establishment of 16 cafés, 12 washing stations, and 7 roasteries, with ongoing training and exposure initiatives.

 With only 8% of developed plantations currently in the harvesting stage, the state has produced 195.40 metric tonnes of parchment and cherry coffee so far. Ngullie expressed confidence that at least 50% of plantations will reach the harvest stage in the next two years.

He also highlighted Nagaland’s distinctive coffee flavour, shaped by its elevation, rainfall, and indigenous farming techniques. To maintain this uniqueness, the Department is investing in modern processing technologies and encouraging youth entrepreneurship in related sectors such as roasting, branding, tourism, and retail.

The event featured a welcome address by Dr. G. Hukugha Sema, Commissioner and Secretary of the Department of Land Resources, and a briefing on ‘Coffee Canvas’ by Partha Pratim Choudary, Joint Director (Extension), Coffee Board, North Eastern Region.

The technical sessions included an introduction to AIC-CCRI-CED and SDC by Ashvik K.S., a session on coffee exports by Dr. Babu Reddy, a presentation on digital printing and packaging by Ramneek Hora and the HP Team, a brand management session by Ashish, and a live coffee brewing demonstration conducted by the Coffee Quality Division of Eté Coffee.

The inaugural session concluded with a vote of thanks from Hekato N, Additional Director, Department of Land Resources.

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