-By  Aribam Bishwajit

At a time when the speculations brew and BJP national leaders not yet announced the next Manipur chief minister, BJP’s leading contenders for the top post, Caretaker Chief Minister N Biren Singh and Th Biswajit, along with supremo of state BJP A Sharda Devi.

The state leaders, according to sources, will meet national leaders to discuss the formation of the new government and choose the Chief Minister. 

With the BJP national leaders not disclosing the name of Manipur Chief Minister even after getting an absolute majority in the recently concluded election, speculations and dialogues on the possibility of changing the CM’s face have escalated. 

On various occasions, political experts have underlined that only a handful of leaders want caretaker Chief Minister N Biren Singh to retain the seat, while a majority of the BJP MLAs wish for a change. Given the current disposition and comprehension of the outgoing BJP-led government, it appears that the top guns of the saffron party in New Delhi are skeptical in deciding the candidate for the top job.

N Biren Singh, time and again in his election campaign, reminded people of internal challenges he had encountered. However, the confrontation mainly was among their BJP leaders eyeing for the CM’s post. Ally-National People’s Party’s lawmakers even withdrew their support, citing Biren’s high-headedness. Moreover, establishing two camps and flying to Delhi to confront leaders several times was no secret. Reports of organizing parlays to troubleshoot the differences had hit the headlines.

Given the five-year records under the leadership of N Biren Singh, the BJP leaders appear to be reluctant in announcing N Biren as Chief Minister and moreover dubious as to which lawmakers to pick for the top post to ensure a stable government in the state.

The last leg of election campaigns saw Biren giving interviews to some national and local media channels, wherein he couldn’t highlight the BJP-led Government’s achievements accurately, inviting people’s criticism on social media platforms regarding his ‘baseless claims.’ His statements, as per the sources, fumed state BJP leaders, prompting discreet discussions at the State’s BJP head office.

Speculations erupted in local media implying N Biren Singh and Th Biswajit Singh to be the top contenders for the CM’s chair, while the rumor mill has it that Congress turncoat Govindas Konthoujam and former speaker Yumnam Khemchand Singh vying for the top post.

N Biren Singh’s inability to present a BJP-led government’s unified picture among its legislators and former ally-NPP resorted to revolt against him, and he, as the chief minister then, couldn’t prove his leadership, presents a high probability to coerce the BJP leaders to determine a new face for the Manipur Chief Minister post.