Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) legislator Thokchom Radheshyam Singh on Wednesday claimed that 44 Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs) are prepared to form a new government in Manipur. His remarks came after a delegation of 10 BJP MLAs called on Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla at the Raj Bhavan in Imphal.
“Forty-four MLAs are ready to form a government as per the wishes of the people. We have conveyed this to the governor. We also discussed what solutions can be there for the issue,” Singh told reporters following the meeting.
He added, “The governor noted what we had to say and will initiate actions in the best interests of the people.”
When asked if the group had formally staked a claim to form the government, Singh replied that the central leadership of the BJP would take the final decision. “However, to inform that we are ready is similar to staking a claim to form a government. Speaker Th Satyabrata has individually and jointly met the 44 MLAs. There is no one who opposes the formation of a new government,” he asserted.
The state has been under President’s Rule since February after then chief minister N. Biren Singh resigned in the wake of severe criticism over his administration’s handling of the ethnic clashes between the Meitei and Kuki-Zo communities that erupted in May 2023.
“The people are facing too much hardship. In the previous term, two years were lost due to COVID, and in this term, another two years have been lost due to the conflict,” Singh remarked.
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The 60-member Manipur Legislative Assembly currently has 59 members, with one seat vacant following the demise of a legislator. The BJP-led coalition comprises 32 Meitei MLAs, three Manipuri Muslim MLAs, and nine Naga legislators—totalling 44.
The Congress holds five seats, all represented by Meitei legislators. The remaining 10 MLAs are Kuki representatives—seven of whom won on BJP tickets, two from the Kuki People’s Alliance, and one Independent.
The political developments come amid renewed unrest in the Meitei-majority Imphal Valley, triggered by an incident in Gwaltabi on 20 May. Security personnel allegedly concealed the name “Manipur” written on a government bus’s windshield, provoking widespread protests. Meitei civil society groups have demanded an apology from the governor and the resignation of the state’s chief secretary, director general of police, and security advisor.
Since the onset of the ethnic conflict in May last year, over 250 people have lost their lives. Meitei groups continue to maintain that the state’s territorial integrity must remain intact during any peace negotiations. Meanwhile, Kuki-Zo organisations insist that a separate administration for the hill districts inhabited by their communities is the only viable solution.
The recent Gwaltabi episode has reignited simmering tensions, even as the Centre had introduced several confidence-building measures in recent months aimed at restoring calm in the strife-torn state.
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