Former Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh has accused some leaders within the BJP’s state unit of conspiring with the Congress to remove him from office, alleging that several party colleagues could
not accept his rise to the Chief Minister’s post.
He has also claimed that there is intense public demand for his return as Chief Minister ahead of the Assembly elections due early next year.
In an exclusive interview with news agency PTI, Singh said he had not been treated well by sections of the state leadership since 2017, while clarifying that he was not blaming the BJP’s central leadership for the developments that led to his resignation in February 2025.
“I had not been treated well since 2017. I am not accusing the Delhi leadership but sections of the state leaders who conspired against me with the Congress,” Singh said.
“There are MLAs who could never accept how I became the Chief Minister twice after having crossed over from the Congress. They consider BJP as their property. So they plotted, planned and made me resign,” he alleged.
The present BJP government in Manipur is headed by Y Khemchand Singh, who was among the senior party leaders who had pressed for Biren Singh’s removal in 2025.
Biren Questions Argument That His Removal Would Restore Peace
Questioning the argument that his removal from the Chief Minister’s post would help restore peace in the state, Singh pointed to the continued violence involving different communities, including Naga and Kuki groups.
He challenged those who had accused him of favouring the majority community and contributing to polarisation, asking why violence continued even after he stepped down.
“Now Biren is out. So, what happened now? How many Naga brothers have died? They were blaming me. They were saying I favour the majority. Now it is Christians versus Christians. Where has the European Union gone?” he asked.
Singh was referring to the fresh wave of violence since the formation of the Khemchand government in February this year.
He also invoked the European Parliament’s July 2023 resolution on the Manipur violence, which had expressed concern over the situation and urged Indian authorities to protect religious minorities, end the violence and facilitate independent investigations.
Accuses Government Of Failing To Continue Anti-Drug Campaign
Expressing concern over the functioning of the present government, the 65-year-old former Chief Minister said the BJP risked losing public confidence because of the lack of visible action on issues that had been central to its political agenda.
He specifically flagged the anti-drug campaign, action against poppy cultivation and the identification of suspected illegal immigrants, saying the initiatives undertaken during his tenure needed to continue.
“Anti-drug campaign, anti-poppy plantation, that campaign we are not seeing. The government should also continue biometric identification of suspected illegal immigrants. At least identify them. And even if you can’t deport the illegal immigrants, at least you can keep them in camps. What we have started, continue it. And save the future. We have to save the future,” Singh said.
He alleged that the present government was not adequately communicating its actions to the public, adding that this lack of information was contributing to a loss of confidence.
“Even if they (the present government) are doing anything, as of now, there is no information in the public domain. By communicating to the public what we are doing, we can regain the lost confidence, trust of the people,” he said.
Recalling the approach adopted during his tenure, Singh said his government would publicly share details of the identification of suspected illegal immigrants.
“In my time, we used to tell people in the press that we have identified these many. But for one-and-a-half years, no one has heard about it,” he said.
Says BJP Must Regain Public Trust Ahead Of Assembly Elections
With Manipur scheduled to go to Assembly polls early next year, Singh said the immediate priority for the BJP government should be to regain people’s confidence and demonstrate that it was working on issues concerning the state’s future.
Asked whether growing public anxiety could hurt the BJP’s electoral prospects, he said, “That is my main worry.”
However, despite his criticism of the current government and the circumstances surrounding his resignation, Singh strongly backed the BJP’s return to power.
“If you want to save Manipur, if you want to brighten the future of Manipur, the only way is to bring BJP back,” he said.
He expressed hope that the BJP’s central leadership would intervene to address the situation and help the party regain public support before the elections.
Singh also stressed the need for the party to communicate its initiatives, including border fencing and biometric identification of suspected illegal immigrants, to convince voters that it had a roadmap for Manipur’s future.
‘People Want Me Back As CM’, Says Biren Singh
Asked whether he saw himself returning to the Chief Minister’s chair if the BJP retained power, Singh said the decision would depend on the party securing a majority.
“How can I say that? I can only say that there is intense public demand. People want me back as the Chief Minister. But such decisions depend on us getting a majority,” he said.
Singh also expressed regret over being unable to complete the work he had undertaken during his tenure, blaming internal differences and infighting for the situation.
“You need a cancer expert to treat cancer, not ortho. I feel bad that I could not complete what I had set out to do due to disunity and infighting,” he said.
He claimed that the situation in Manipur had been moving towards normalcy towards the end of his tenure, but alleged that political considerations and internal divisions derailed the process.
“But politicians played politics. And they succumbed,” he said.
How Biren Singh Was Removed As Manipur CM
Singh resigned as Chief Minister on February 9, 2025, amid mounting dissent within the ruling BJP and the Congress threatening to move a no-confidence motion against his government.
Y Khemchand Singh, who was then a minister in Biren Singh’s cabinet, was among the senior BJP leaders who had reportedly warned the central leadership that the government could collapse unless Biren Singh was replaced.
While the former Chief Minister had earlier suggested that the BJP’s central leadership might have removed him to restore peace in Manipur, he has now spoken about alleged dissent and internal manoeuvring by sections of the state leadership that preceded his resignation.
Singh first became Chief Minister on March 15, 2017, heading Manipur’s first BJP-led government. The BJP had won 21 seats in the 60-member Assembly, against the Congress’ 28, but formed the government with the support of regional parties and other legislators.
He returned for a second term in March 2022 after the BJP secured a majority on its own.
Before joining the BJP in 2016, Singh began his political career with the Democratic Revolutionary Peoples Party in 2002 and joined the Congress the following year.
