Manipur: Sambit Patra to hold meetings with leaders and community heads 

Imphal, May 5 (IANS) A week after 21 MLAs of Manipur urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah to reinstate a popular government in the state, BJP’s North East in-charge Sambit Patra arrived in Imphal on Monday and held meetings with some political leaders. 

A BJP leader said that Patra, during his two-day stay in Manipur, would hold a series of meetings with MLAs and leaders of Meitei and Kuki-Zo communities.

“Soon after his arrival in Imphal, Patra went to Churachandpur, where he met local MLA Vungzagin Valte (who belongs to the Kuki community). Returning to Imphal, he met former Chief Minister N. Biren Singh, Manipur Assembly Speaker Thokchom Satyabrata Singh and other leaders,” the leader said.

The BJP’s North East in-charge is likely to meet some MLAs, former ministers, and leaders of various factions.

Manipur has been under the President’s Rule since February 13, four days after the resignation of N. Biren Singh from the Chief Minister’s post. The 60-member Manipur Assembly, which, after the promulgation of President’s Rule, has been put under suspended animation, has a tenure till 2027.

Meanwhile, 21 Members of the Manipur Legislative Assembly (MLAs) in a joint letter on April 29 have urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah to reinstate a popular government in the state.

One of the MLAs confirmed the development and said that out of the 21 lawmakers, most belong to the BJP and the remaining are from the National People’s Party (NPP), Naga People’s Front (NPF) and two independent legislators.

The letter of the MLAs to the Prime Minister and the Union Home Minister said that the people of Manipur welcome the President’s Rule with lots of hope and expectations, but no visible actions to bring peace and normalcy in the state have been seen so far.

The MLAs said that the installation of a popular government is the only means to bring peace and normalcy in Manipur.

In a bid to resolve the two-year-long ethnic hostilities, the first tripartite meeting between the officials of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and the representatives of Meitei and Kuki-Zo communities was held in New Delhi on April 5.