JD(U) Manipur unit refuses to support Biren Singh government, party sacks state president

The lone JD(U) MLA in the state, Md Abdul Nasir, will sit in the opposition benches, the party said on Wednesday.

Guwahati: Stirring political drama, the Manipur unit of the Nitish Kumar-led Janata Dal (United) on Wednesday told the Governor of the state that its lone MLA does not support the Biren Singh government, following which the party high command sacked the state unit president.

In a letter to Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla, JD(U)'s Manipur unit president Kshetrimayum Biren Singh said that its lone MLA, Md Abdul Nasir, will sit in the Opposition benches in the Assembly.

Quickly reacting to the development, JD(U) national spokesperson Rajiv Ranjan Prasad issued a video message clarifying that it continues to support the Biren government, dismissing claims of withdrawing support as "baseless".

The party also sacked its Manipur unit president Kshetrimayum Biren Singh, for writing a letter reiterating the alleged withdrawal of support without consulting the central leadership. He said the party's state unit president was sacked for indiscipline. "I want to assure that JD(U)'s support to the NDA will remain intact not only in Manipur but in Bihar and in the rest of the country."

Although the move by the Manipur unit was unlikely to have any impact on the Biren Singh-led government, the announcement came as a surprise as JD(U) is a partner of the BJP, both at the Centre as well as in Bihar. JD(U) had won in six Assembly constituencies in the 2022 polls but five of them defected to the BJP after the saffron party won a majority on its own with 32 seats (in the 60-member Assembly) and retained power for the second straight term.    

In the letter to the Governor, JD(U)'s Manipur unit said, "In the election to the state assembly of Manipur held in February-March 2022, six JD(U) candidates had secured victories. After a few months, 5 MLAs of JD(U) among the 6 defected to the BJP. Trial under the Tenth Schedule of the Indian Constitution of the 5 MLAs is pending before the Speake's Tribunal." 

"After JD(U) became a part of the I.N.D.I.A. bloc, support to the BJP-led NDA government was withdrawn by JD(U)... as such, seating arrangement of the lone MLA of JD(U) in Manipur Md Abdul Nasir was made in the Opposition bench in the last session of the Assembly by the Speaker," it added.

This, however, came as another jerk to the Biren Singh government, which saw its biggest partner NPP withdrawing its support in November last year. The party alleged that the Biren Singh government "miserably failed" to control the Meitei-Kuki conflict that had roiled the state since May 2023.

Reacting to this, senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh tried to draw a parallel between JD(U) questioning the UGC Rules announced by Narendra Modi government and the development in Manipur. "Is this heralding political climate change?" Ramesh posted on X.