JD(U) Manipur declares not to support BJP led Manipur government, JD(U) takes action against its Manipur MLAs

Imphal: Janata Dal (United), Manipur, submitted a letter to Manipur governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla on Wednesday, affirming that the party does not support the BJP-led government.

The letter said, “JD(U) is now part of the INDIA bloc and has withdrawn its support for the BJP-led government, informing the governor, the Leader of the House (chief minister), and the Speaker.”

However, JD(U) national spokesperson Rajeev Ranjan Prasad dismissed the claims made in the letter, calling them “misleading and baseless.”

Prasad said, “The party has taken cognizance of this, and the president of the Manipur unit has been relieved of his position. We have supported the NDA, and our support for the NDA government in Manipur will continue. The Manipur unit did not consult the central leadership, nor were they given approval. The letter was written independently by the state president. Considering this an act of indiscipline, action has been taken against him.”

Prasad said JD(U) remains part of the NDA and that the state unit will continue to work for the development of Manipur.

In the 2022 Manipur Assembly elections, six MLAs were elected on JD(U) tickets: Kh. Joykishan, N. Sanate, Md Achab Uddin, Thangjam Arunkumar, L M Khaute and Md Abdul Nasir.

The letter, submitted by JD(U) Manipur unit president Ksh. Biren Singh, stated that in the February-March 2022 elections, six candidates won on JD(U) tickets. On September 12, 2022, five MLAs, excluding Md Abdul Nasir, defected to the BJP. Since then, disqualification proceedings under the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution of India against the five MLAs have been pending before the Speaker’s Tribunal.

The National People’s Party (NPP) had already withdrawn support from the BJP-led Manipur government in November last year.

Of the total 60 seats in the Manipur Legislative Assembly, BJP currently holds 32 seats, NPP has seven, JD(U) has six, Naga People’s Front (NPF) holds five, Kuki People’s Alliance (KPA) has two, and the Indian National Congress holds five, along with three independent MLAs.

Following the recent demise of NPP Manipur president N. Kayisii, who represented Tadubi (ST) Assembly constituency in Senapati district, the seat remains vacant. Kayisii passed away on January 18 after a prolonged illness.