Imphal, Feb 9 (IANS) A day before a crucial Assembly session, Manipur Chief Minister N. Biren Singh on Sunday submitted his resignation to Governor A.K. Bhalla. Biren Singh, however, has been requested by the Governor to continue as the caretaker CM.  In the letter to the Governor, Biren Singh said that he was "extremely grateful to the Central government for timely actions, interventions, developmental work and implementation of various projects for safeguarding the interest of every single Manipuri".

"My sincere request to the Central government through your good office is to continue with the same. I take the opportunity to enumerate the most important ones of them," he said, citing these as maintaining the "territorial integrity of Manipur which has a rich and diverse civilizational history over thousands of years", cracking down "on border infiltration and to formulate policy for the deportation of the illegal immigrants" and "the fight against drugs and narco terrorism".

He also listed the "stringent and fool-proof revised mechanism of FMR with the biometric being stringently applied" and "time bound and faster border which is underway". Nongthombam Biren Singh, 64, took over as the 12th Chief Minister of Manipur on March 15, 2017, after leading the BJP to its first victory in the state, and retained power in the 2022 Assembly elections. However, the ethnic violence between Meitis and Kuki-Zos that broke out in May 2023 in the state, had cast a cloud over his second term.

Meanwhile, a senior official of the Raj Bhavan said that Singh along with a few ministers and other leaders met Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla and submitted his resignation letter. He said that the Governor has requested Singh to continue in his office as the caretaker Chief Minister. A senior party leader said that it is likely that the party's central leadership in consultation with state leaders would announce the new leadership within the next couple of days.

Though there have been reports for quite sometime that Biren Singh may quit the chief ministerial position following the directions of the central leaders, the development on Sunday took everyone in the political as well as non-political circles by surprise. During the meeting with the Governor, Biren Singh, was accompanied by BJP’s northeast in-charge and Lok Sabha member from Puri constituency, Sambit Patra, state unit BJP President Adhikarimayum Sharda Devi, several cabinet ministers and party leaders.

/IANS