Manipur CM N Biren Singh Resigns Amid Political Crisis

Guwahati: Bogged down by growing dissension, Manipur chief minister N Biren Singh on Sunday resigned from his post, submitting his resignation letter to Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla at the Raj Bhavan in Imphal.

Mr Singh, who led the BJP government in the state, stepped down a day before the budget session of the state assembly was scheduled to start where a large section of legislators had threatened to bring a no-confidence motion against the chief minister.

Earlier in the day, Mr Singh met Union home minister Amit Shah in Delhi. Later, he, along with BJP MP Sambit Patra, state ministers, and MLAs, went to meet the Manipur governor.

In his resignation letter, Singh expressed gratitude to the central government for its "timely actions, interventions, developmental work, and implementation of various projects for safeguarding the interest of every single Manipuri." He urged the Centre to continue its support and listed key priorities: Maintaining Manipur’s territorial integrity, which has a "rich and diverse civilizational history over thousands of years."

Cracking down on border infiltration and formulating a policy for deporting illegal immigrants.

Continuing the fight against drugs and narco-terrorism.

Strict implementation of the revised Free Movement Regime (FMR) with biometric monitoring.

Ensuring the timely completion of border infrastructure projects.

Sources in the BJP said that the resignation of the chief minister came after months of unrest and internal party discussions amid several political developments.

Pointing out that Mr Singh was asked by the central party leadership in New Delhi on Sunday to step down, sources said that before his departure to New Delhi, the chief minister had convened a meeting at the CM’s Secretariat in Imphal with all BJP and alliance MLAs, officially to discuss the upcoming budget session.

However, sources indicate that the real purpose of the meeting was to assess the level of support for Mr Singh among party legislators, sources said adding that a total of 21 MLAs were present during the discussions.

Meanwhile, a separate meeting was also held at an undisclosed location on Saturday, which was attended by BJP MLAs unhappy with Mr Biren Singh’s leadership. Another round of discussions among dissenting MLAs took place on Sunday at the BJP office that forced central BJP leadership to ask Mr singh to step down, sources said.

It is significant that on Wednesday night, a group of seven BJP MLAs, including senior minister Thongam Biswajit, minister Govindas Konthoujam, minister L. Susindro, MLA S. Kunjakeshor, MLA Kh. Ibomcha, MLA Premchandra, and MLA Karam Shyam, departed from Imphal to New Delhi on a late-night charter flight at about 8:50 pm. They also had several rounds of meetings with central party leaders including union home minister Amit Shah, sources said.

Meanwhile, sources in the BJP said that Mr Singh was pushing for imposition of President's rule in the state. However, BJP legislators are proposing the change of leadership and formation of a new government in the state. Indicating that central leadership has already started consultation for a new leader to lead the party in trouble-torn Manipur.�