With 32 out of 60 seats, the Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) is set to return to power in Manipur. Manipur Chief Minister Nongthombam Biren Singh won his Legislative Assembly seat of Heingang for the fifth time.
Biren Singh secured 24,814 votes, amounting to 78.54 percent of the vote share. He defeated Congress leader Pangeijam Saratchandra Singh by 18,271 votes.
On Thursday evening, 10 March, Singh thanked the people of Manipur on Twitter. He said that the 'historic victory' is a testament of people's faith towards Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
There are 60 seats in the Manipur Legislative Assembly, which meant that the party had to reach 31 seats in order to win.
National People's Party won seven seats, followed by Janata Dal (United) that won six seats. Congress, which earlier had its stronghold in Manipur, won only five seats while Naga Peoples Front won five seats. Kuki People’s Alliance won two seats.
Biren Singh
A former footballer and then journalist, N Biren Singh initially joined politics in Manipur with the Democratic Revolutionary Peoples Party, contesting and winning the Heingang seat in 2002.
He joined the Congress and became a minister of state in 2003 in the Congress government of the state. He would go on to win the Heingang seat, now as the Congress candidate, in 2007 and 2012 as well.
Singh was part of the revolt against former Congress Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh in October 2016, resigning from the Assembly and the party. He formally joined the BJP on 17 October 2016 and became the CM after the state elections the following year.
Even as celebrations began at Biren Singh's residence, he refused to confirm if he would be the chief minister of the government again. "We'll take time to stake a claim to form the government, let the results be out. Our national leaders will decide on CM's face, we'll focus on PM Modi's mantra of inclusive development," reported ANI.
Former CM Okram Ibobi Singh from Congress won the Thoubal constituency but the party itself has only won five seats.
Addressing a virtual poll rally, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that in the days to come, the BJP government will create a Rs 100-crore Manipur start-up fund as well as two special economic zones, reported News18.
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)