Imphal, Dec. 12: The BJP's Manipur election management committee convener Thounaojam Chaoba Singh today threatened to quit the party if the national leaders fail to remove the Manipur in-charge.

"I will resign from the BJP if Prahlad Singh Patel is not removed from the post of Manipur in-charge," Chaoba Singh, also a former president of the state unit, told reporters today. Chaoba Singh, who is also a former Union minister of state, has a large following in the BJP.

Chaoba Singh is angry with the central leaders, particularly Prahlad and Union human resource development minister Prakash Javadekar, for allegedly cancelling two political conferences, convened by two BJP ticket aspirants to mobilise support for the party, at the last minute yesterday.

Chaoba Singh accused the two leaders of preventing former MLA Sapam Kunjakishore Singh and P. Saratchandra Singh from convening political conventions at Patsoi and Heingang constituencies respectively after initially giving them the green signal. He claimed that Union transport minister Nitin Gadkari, Javadekar and Prahlad, who were here yesterday to attend the launch of a road development project for Manipur, had earlier also assured the two ticket aspirants that they would attend the conferences.

Angered by the cancellation of the meetings, supporters of the two ticket aspirants pelted stones at the party head office here last evening. Police had to fire tear gas shells to disperse them.

BJP office-bearers today held an emergency meeting to review the developments with party president Ksh. Bhabananda Singh in the chair. They also informed the party's central leaders of the developments. Party sources said the central leaders instructed the state unit to take action against those who created unruly scenes at the party office yesterday.

Asked if action would be taken, party spokesperson Nimaichand Luwang told reporters after the meeting, "We have not taken any decision on taking action against anyone."

He added, "We have informed the developments to the central leaders. So far no specific instruction is coming from them."

Luwang clarified that the party did not allow the two ticket aspirants to hold the political conferences as the BJP mandals of their respective constituencies were not informed of the programmes as required under the party policy.