BJP candidate and the party’s Tripura chief Manik Saha on Thursday won the election to the lone Rajya Sabha seat from the State. He defeated his rival Bhanu Lal Saha of the CPI(M).
Dr. Saha, a dentist by profession, got 40 votes as against 15 of Mr. Bhanu Lal Saha. This was the first defeat of the CPI(M) in a Rajya Sabha poll in Tripura over 30 years.
Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb has congratulated Dr. Manik Saha for his election as the first BJP Rajya Sabha member from Tripura.