Tripura: BJP to dress up 'Bharat Mata' in North East tribal attire

Agartala: The BJP has decided to depict 'Bharat Mata' in the traditional attire of north east tribal communities, the party's central observer in Tripura, where elections are due next year, said here on Tuesday.

Bharat Mata is the national personification of India as a Mother Goddess, more specifically Goddess Durga. She is usually depicted in a saffron sari holding the Indian national flag and accompanied by a lion.

The photographs of Bharat Mata in the tribe specific traditional attire would be displayed in party programmes in the tribal areas as a mark of symbolic integrity and oneness, said Sunil Deodhar, the BJP's central observer for Tripura.

"The north eastern region has remained backward for long. We want to connect it culturally with the rest of the country and remove its backwardness," Deodhar told PTI.

"The Mongoloid communities of the north east too worship Durga but we do not see the goddess in their traditional attire. We have therefore decided to depict Bharat Mata in the traditional attires of all the 300 tribal communities in the region," he said.

According to him, in the first phase, Bharat Mata has already been depicted in clothes worn by three major tribal communities of Tripura ? Tripurai, Reang and Chakma -- who constitute 77.8 percent of the total tribal population in Tripura.

Young tribal girls of Tripurai, Chakma and Reang communities were photographed in their traditional apparel depicting them as Bharat Mata, he said.

Biplab Deb, president of the BJP's Tripura unit, said it was a very good concept and a symbol of amity between the tribals and non tribals in the state.

The party would also project images of Bharat Mata in the usual sari as Bengalis identify with it, party leaders said.

Bengali speaking people form two-thirds of the population of the state.

According to Deodhar, the BJP has built an organisational network among the tribals, who constitute one-third of the 37 lakh population of Tripura, by breaking the traditional communist base.