BJP’s Central Election Committee (CEC), including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, met at the party headquarters here on Friday to finalise the names of the candidates for the upcoming Tripura Assembly polls.

The meeting was attended by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president JP Nadda, senior party leaders and Union ministers Rajnath Singh and Amit Shah, and Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha, among others.

The meeting lasted for more than three hours. Seat-wise discussions were held to finalise the candidates’ names for the 16 February Assembly polls.

Ahead of the party’s CEC meeting, several meetings were held at the houses of Nadda and the BJP’s coordinator for north-east, Sambit Patra, on Thursday.

Meanwhile, Pradyot Deb Barman, a scion of the erstwhile royal family of Tripura and the founder of the Tipra Motha, a political party from the state, has ruled out any alliance with the BJP in the upcoming polls.

“No alliance – my heart does not agree and so I have made my decision that I cannot accept New Delhi’s offer. Whether we win or lose, will fight one last fight. I cannot betray our cause and people,” he said in a tweet.

Deb Barman reportedly met the BJP top brass to discuss the prospects of an alliance in the state and his demand for a “Greater Tipraland”. Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma was also present during the discussions.

Deb Barman has been demanding a separate state for the indigenous people of Tripura.

The elections to the 60-member Tripura Assembly are scheduled be held on 16 February and the last date for filing nominations is 30 January. The counting of votes will be taken up on 2 March.

The BJP formed its government in the northeastern state for the first time in 2018, ending the 25-year rule of the Communist Party of India (Marxist). The saffron party won 36 of the 60 Assembly seats in Tripura five years ago.