Regime change in Manipur? Here's what you need to know

Guwahati: The Congress party is seeking to make a grand return in Manipur after as many as 9 MLAs – S Subhashchandra Singh Singh, TT Haokip, and Samuel Jendai from the BJP, Y Joykumar Singh, N. Kayisii, L Jayanta Kumar Singh, and Letpao Haokip from the NPP, T Robindro Singh from the TMC, and Ashab Uddin (Independent), pulled support from the BJP-led coalition Government under Chief Minister N Biren Singh.

According to inputs, members of the Congress party, under the leadership of the former CM Okram Ibobi Singh, will approach the Governor of the State, Najma Heptulla, to stake a claim to form the Government.

It needs mention here that the Congress had won 28 seats in the 2017 general elections with 28 seats. While the BJP won 21 seats, NPP and NPF won 4 seats each, and LJP, TMC, and an independent candidate won one seat each.

The BJP was able to form the Government after getting the support of all the non-Congress MLAs and a lone Congress MLA, Thounaojam Shyamkumar.

After the formation of the Government, the BJP's numbers rose to 40 after 7 Congress MLAs also joined the saffron outfit.

Earlier this year, the Supreme Court bench headed by Justice Rohinton Nariman in March restrained Thounaojam Shyamkumar Singh from entering the Legislative Assembly and disqualified him from being a minister.

Thereafter, the Assembly Speaker disqualified him as an MLA. Again, in June, the Manipur High Court restrained the other seven Congress MLAs who defected to the BJP from entering the state Assembly unless their disqualification petitions are disposed of by the Speaker.

With these developments, the BJP now has the support of only 23 MLAs in its kitty, while the Congress has the support of 29, in the house where the effective strength in case of a floor test will be 52.

Meanwhile, Joykumar Singh, the former deputy CM who withdrew support from the BJP has said that he was hurt at the Biren Singh Government's mis-handling of the Covid-19 crisis, which propelled him to leave the coalition.

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