Imphal, Jan. 13: The Manipur unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is yet to name their chief ministerial candidate till date. The party is hoping to win the forthcoming assembly polls after their victory in the last by-polls by bagging two seats and also because of subsequent entry of a number of ex-congress MLAs including former ministers to the party,
The BJP central leaders have also been asked to do the needful as Manipur goes to the polls on March 4 and 8 next, party sources said.
Even though reports of differences among the state BJP leaders was once off the record, it came to light when two groups of party workers belonging to two aspiring candidates for BJP tickets stormed their party’s state office in Imphal in December last year. The ground for the action was to seek clarification over the absence of BJP national leaders in two different political rallies despite assurances. The reason, according to sources, is because of differences among the BJP state unit’s hierarchy. However, the party’s state unit convenor (biodiversity cell) Rajkumar Somorjit disagreed that there were differences, saying “It is an internal matter and it can be resolved.”
BJP had two MLAs before but has only one now after the other joined the Congress in the 60-member Manipur assembly. The party is readying an all-out effort to replace the 15 years Congress rule in the state this time. Even Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu recently said that the BJP would succeed in forming the government in Manipur as the party had come to power in Assam and Arunachal Pradesh.
However, things seem to have twisted towards the ruling front in the state lately because the government at the centre is increasingly being seen without initiating any step to resolve the issue of the ongoing economic blockade on National Highways in Manipur which has been causing a lot of inconvenience to the public.
The United Naga Council (UNC) called the blockade since November 1 last year to protest the Congress government’s decision to elevate Jiribam and Sadar Hills to full-fledged districts.
The UNC and its associates feel that the move of the government was to divide the ancestral lands of the Nagas in Manipur. The state government has denied the assertion saying it was done for ‘administrative convenience.’
