After the resignation of Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh, it has been announced to impose President’s rule in the state. Biren Singh resigned on 9 February after 21 months of ethnic unrest. After this, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was looking for the new Chief Minister, but till now no name has been agreed. Due to this President’s rule has been implemented in Manipur. Since 1950, President’s rule has been imposed 134 times in 29 states and union territories, in which it has been implemented 10-10 times in Manipur and Uttar Pradesh.
Official notification of the Ministry of Home Affairs
The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) issued an official notification announced President’s rule in the state. This notification said that President Draupadi Murmu believes that the government cannot be run according to the provisions of the Constitution in the present situation of Manipur.
The notification mentions, “Using the powers provided by Article 356 of the Constitution, I declare that all the functions of the Manipur State Government and all the powers used by the Governor are subjected to the President.” In addition, the assembly has also been suspended.
BJP has not yet agreed on new Chief Minister
Despite several rounds of discussion between the BJP’s Northeast in -charge Sambit Patra and the MLAs, the name of the new Chief Minister could not be agreed. Patra met Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla twice and also held meetings with state party president A Sharda Devi, but the final decision could not be made.
Biren Singh’s tenure was in controversies
The tenure of former Manipur Chief Minister Nongthombam Biren Singh was surrounded by many controversies, especially with ethnic violence and administrative failures. He was a football player and journalist before entering politics. He became the Chief Minister for the first time in 2017 and started his second term in 2022. He was an MLA from Hengang assembly constituency in Imphal East district.
Singh entered politics in 2002 and won the Democratic Revolutionary People’s Party. Later joined the Congress in 2003 and retained the seats in 2007 and 2012. However, in 2016, he resigned from the Congress and joined the BJP. In the 2017 elections, the BJP coalition government was made the Chief Minister. In 2022, he again became the Chief Minister, but his term remained disturbed.
President’s Rule Imposed in Manipur.
Manipur CM n biren singh resigned from his post on 9th February. https://t.co/vgeov0xirt pic.twitter.com/S9wyma13Ki
– ANI (@ani) February 13, 2025
Ethnic violence and controversy
In May 2023, ethnic violence erupted in the state, in which there was a conflict between the majority of Meeti community of the Imphal Valley and the Kuki-Joisis of the hilly areas. More than 250 people were killed and thousands of people were displaced in this violence. The government’s failure raised serious questions on the leadership of Biren Singh.
In December 2023, Singh publicly apologized for the violence and expressed regret over the deaths and displacement caused by unrest in the state. A new controversy emerged in February 2024, when his alleged audio tapes were leaked, in which he was allegedly approached for ethnic violence. Due to these controversies, he finally resigned as Chief Minister on 9 February.
