Manipur BJP MLA Claims Support of 44 to Form Govt

 New Delhi: A group of 10 legislators led by BJP MLA Thokchom Radheshyam Singh met Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla on Wednesday and said 44 members of the 59-member Manipur Assembly are willing to form a new government “in accordance with the wishes of the people.”

“We have conveyed to the Governor that 44 MLAs are ready. The Speaker has met them individually and collectively; none of them opposes installing a new ministry,” Singh told reporters after the meeting at Raj Bhavan. He added that any formal claim would be made only after the BJP’s central leadership takes a decision.

Raj Bhavan confirmed in a post on X that the MLAs “emphasised the need to initiate a peace process, strengthen security arrangements, and urged the early formation of a popular government.”

The prospective 44-member bloc comprises 32 Meitei BJP MLAs, three Manipuri Muslim legislators, and nine Naga lawmakers. The remaining seats are held by five Congress Meitei MLAs and 10 Kuki representatives (seven elected on BJP tickets, two from the Kuki People’s Alliance and one Independent). One Assembly seat is vacant.

The push for a new government comes as protests flare in the Imphal valley after security forces allegedly obscured the state’s name on a government bus at Gwaltabi on May 20. Meitei groups have demanded an apology from the Governor and the resignation of the chief secretary, DGP and security adviser.

Since ethnic clashes erupted in May 2023 — claiming more than 250 lives — Meitei organisations have insisted that Manipur’s territorial integrity remain “non-negotiable,” while Kuki-Zo groups continue to press for a separate administrative unit in the hill districts.

Governor Bhalla is expected to consult the Union home ministry and the BJP’s national leadership before deciding on the MLAs’ request.