GUWAHATI, Feb 9: In a major political shake-up, Manipur Chief Minister N. Biren Singh resigned on Sunday, a day before the Opposition Congress was set to move a no-confidence motion against his government in the state assembly. His resignation also comes as the Supreme Court examines leaked audio tapes allegedly linking him to the ongoing ethnic violence in Manipur.
Singh submitted his resignation letter to Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla, stating, “I, Nongthombam Biren Singh, Chief Minister of Manipur, am submitting my resignation herewith. It has been an honour to serve the people of Manipur thus far.”
Expressing gratitude to the Central government, Singh praised its interventions and developmental projects while urging continued efforts to protect Manipur’s territorial integrity, curb illegal immigration, combat narco-terrorism, and implement stricter border security measures.
“I am extremely grateful to the central government for timely actions, interventions, developmental work, and implementation of various projects to safeguard the interests of every single Manipuri. My sincere request to the Central government through your good office is to continue with the same,” Singh said in his resignation letter.
“I take the opportunity to enumerate the most important ones of them- to maintain the territorial integrity of Manipur which has a rich and diverse civilizational history over thousands of years, to crack down on border infiltration and to formulate policy for the deportation of the illegal immigrants, to continue the fight against drugs and narco-terrorism, ro continue the stringent and fool-proof revised mechanism of FMR with the biometric being stringently applied and time-bound and faster border which is underway,” Singh said.
His resignation follows the Supreme Court’s February 4 directive, seeking a sealed-cover report from the Central Forensic Sciences Laboratory on the leaked audio tapes. The tapes, according to the Kuki Organization for Human Rights Trust, allegedly implicate Singh in fueling ethnic violence, which has claimed over 200 lives since last May. While the Manipur government dismissed the tapes as fake, the Supreme Court has scheduled the next hearing on March 24.
Meanwhile, the Manipur Congress is set to move a no-confidence motion against the BJP-led government on Monday. In a post on X, state Congress president Keisham Meghachandra wrote, “Brahmastra Missile will surely hit one of the Double Engine! Congress party set to move No Confidence Motion anytime soon.”
In the 60-member Assembly, Congress holds five seats, while the National People’s Party (NPP) has seven. The ruling BJP commands a majority with 32 MLAs, backed by five Naga People’s Front legislators and six from JD(U). Additionally, there are three Independent MLAs and two from the Kuki People’s Alliance.
With Singh’s exit, Manipur’s political landscape faces uncertainty, as the Supreme Court’s findings and the no-confidence motion could have significant ramifications for the state’s leadership.
