Imphal, April 19: After confident party leaders camped in Delhi to meet with the BJP top command to express their discontent with Chief Minister of Manipur N Biren Singh, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is considering taking disciplinary action against the dissident Manipur MLAs.
A few Manipur BJP legislators visit Delhi to discuss border and developmental issues, while party leadership denies government changes amidst ongoing political skirmishes in the state. State party officials have confirmed the visit of at least four BJP MLAs from Manipur Valley and an unconfirmed number of party MLAs from the Kuki tribe.
The visit follows Langthabal MLA Karam Shyam’s resignation from the Tourism Corporation Manipur Limited chairmanship, citing a lack of responsibility.
A central BJP leader has played down the situation, citing Manipur politics’ history of power struggles among different interest groups.
Uripok MLA Khwairakpam Raghumani shared a picture of his meeting with Union Minister of State for DONER B L Verma, where they discussed Manipur’s border and developmental issues. Meanwhile, BJP MLA RK Imo Singh emphasized that legislators should work according to their party’s programs and decisions, and disputes with party or government leaders should be addressed through appropriate authorities instead of the media.
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“They (Thokchom Radheshyam Singh, Karam Shyam, Paonam Brojen, and Raghumani) discussed the border and developmental issues of Manipur,” the post said.
Another BJP MLA, RK Imo Singh, on his official Facebook account said, “We all are bound by a particular ideology/constitution of the political party we belong to. As Legislators, we have a bounded duty to work as per the programmes and decisions of that government/party. One may complain and take the dispute against the leader of the govt/party/minister to the appropriate authority, but not take that dispute to the media as that amounts to attract disciplinary action being taken up against the complainant.”
The trip to Delhi to meet national leaders came a day after BJP MLA Karam Shyam of Langthabal constituency tendered his resignation on Monday from the chairmanship of Tourism Corporation Manipur Limited complaining that he had “not been assigned any responsibility”.
The mutiny is reportedly being led by Thokchom Radheshyam Singh, a decorated IPS officer turned MLA who quit last week from his position as the Manipur chief minister’s advisor. “BJP is a disciplined party and there is a way to express oneself and raise the matters concerned. These MLAs have violated the very premise of party discipline and therefore it is important that party discipline applies to all,” was the verse of a senior Manipur party official.
This occurs as the dissident MLAs assert that they have the support of 10 to 15 MLAs. The suspension of the So agreement of 2008 by the State Government in March has been highlighted as one of the primary grounds for disagreement by the majority of MLAs from the Kuki community.
“Ours is a government with full majority and there is nothing to fear. Out of 60, we have 55 MLAs so there is no threat to the CM or his position,” a cabinet minister from Biren Singh’s government said after the meeting of party leaders.
Even though the dissident MLAs have stated in the media that they haven’t been assigned any responsibilities, Manipur government officials indicated that it has been done since some complaints have been made against them.
“Some of these MLAs have been involved in corruption activities which have come to the fore and in its wisdom the party leadership has done what needed to be done,” another cabinet minister from the state said.
The renegade MLAs have not yet scheduled any meetings with Delhi’s top officials. It is well known that these MLAs would receive a fair hearing from the central leadership. Next week BJP Manipur in-charge Dr. Sambit Patra will travel to the state to hold a meeting with leaders and MLAs.
According to certain party leaders, the Kuki community’s discontentment stems from the screening process implemented by the chief minister amid suspected immigration from Myanmar. In Manipur, demographic concerns can be a sensitive topic both politically and socially.
Since gaining power in 2016, the BJP has taken significant steps to tackle these issues and bridge regional disparities. The state government has worked extensively to address the issues faced by the predominantly Kuki and Naga Hill residents.
The government marked its first anniversary recently with an event in the hills to underscore its focus on the region’s development.
