Nadda

Imphal, October 06: BJP national president JP Nadda is all set to blow the poll bugle in Manipur ahead of assembly elections in 2022. Nadda will be in Manipur on October 9 and 10. It is his first visit to the state after taking charge as the party president. He will be accompanied by BJP general secretory BL Santhosh.

BJP in-charge of Manipur, Sambit Patra, election in-charge and Union Minister, Bhupendra Yadav, election co-in-charge, Pratima Mondol and co-in-charge, minister in the Assam government, Ashok Singhal, and general secretary organization co-in-charge for Northeast states, Ajay Jamwal, will also be present there.

During the two-day trip, Nadda will hold various meetings with party office bearers and the BJP core group. He will also inaugurate three offices of the party, including the main office in the capital city Imphal.

According to the source, Since Covid-19 protocols are still in place, the BJP wants to keep away from holding large public meetings or rallies. The BJP national president will, thus, hold smaller gatherings of anywhere between 300 to 500 people keeping social distancing in mind. Similar meetings will also be held with party workers. A couple of meetings with the prominent citizens of Manipur are also on the cards.

The saffron party is gearing up for the upcoming Manipur assembly polls and has set itself a target of getting a two-thirds majority and 40 out of 60 seats in the polls. The N Biren Singh-led BJP unit is seeking its second term there.

Leading the NDA government, Biren Singh on March 15, 2017, formed the government in Manipur and took the oath with either minister. Later four new ministers were added to his cabinet.

The Biren Singh government got a major jolt in June 2020 when nine MLAs, including ministers, withdrew their support from the government, reducing it to a minority. An intervention by the central leadership within a week’s time resulted in four NPP MLAs coming back to the NDA fold, averting the fall of the government.


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Singh was able to win the trust vote during which out of 24 MLAs of Congress 8 defied the party whip and abstained from voting. Thereafter O Henry Singh and six others resigned from the Congress.

At present, the NDA, led by the BJP, is in majority in the assembly with 36 out of 60 seats this includes 20 4BJP MLAs and four MLAs each from NPP and NDF, 1 from LJP, and three independents.