Manipur: CM candidate

Manipur: BJP elects N Biren Singh as CM candidate, to stake claim to form government

The BJP's N Biren Singh has been elected the legislature party leader in Manipur, and will soon meet the Governor to stake claim to form government.

The Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) N Biren Singh has been elected the legislature party leader in Manipur, and will soon meet the Governor to stake claim to form government.

Union Minister Piyush Goyal, who was appointed an observer for Manipur yesterday, said Biren Singh was elected unanimously.

Meanwhile, Manipur Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh will resign from his post after he failed to get the majority numbers to form the government in the state.

Earlier, in an informal show of strength before Governor Najma Heptulla, the BJP - led by its north east in-charge Ram Madhav and Himanta Biswa Sarma - paraded 32 MLAs supporting the party. The 32 legislators in the BJP's delegation included Congress MLA from Andro Shyam Kumar and the lone Trinamool Congress MLA in the state Robindro Singh.  

Though the Congress claimed that it had the support of the four National People's Party MLAs, Vivekraj Wangkhem of the NPP maintained his party was supporting the BJP to form government.

"Our party and elected members have extended support to the BJP in the formation of the government," he said. Wangkhem also said that the party's earlier written assurance to the Congress is invalidated.

The NPP's Conrad Sangma, too, confirmed that his party supports the BJP, and added that a letter the Congress claimed the NPP had written in support of it, didn't even have the official letterhead.