Former minister Yumnam Khemchand Singh is set to become the chief minister of strife-hit Manipur with his election as the BJP legislature party leader in Manipur on Tuesday evening.

The 62-year-old two-time Singjamei MLA’s name as the likely successor of N. Biren Singh had been doing the rounds for a while and his selection comes a day after the party set the ball rolling for the restoration of a popular government by appointing national general secretary Tarun Chugh as the central observer for the election of the legislature party leader in Manipur.

Biren Singh’s resignation as chief minister on February 9, 2025, and the inability of the BJP to elect a consensus candidate for the top post, despite having a
comprehensive majority, saw the state under President’s rule on February 13, 2025. The state Assembly is under suspended animation.

Congratulating Khemchand, Sambit Patra, the BJP’s Northeast in-charge, in a post on X, said a meeting of the Manipur BJP legislative party was held at the BJP headquarters in New Delhi with Chugh as the observer in the presence of state unit president A. Sharda Devi where Khemchand was “unanimously elected” as the leader of the state legislative party by “all BJP MLAs of Manipur”.

The BJP has 37 MLAs of its own in the 59-member state Assembly, including seven Kuki-Zo MLAs. A Kuki-Zo MLA told The Telegraph that he stayed away from the meeting but met several party leaders in Delhi. The BJP leadership also met MLAs of NDA allies — the NPP and the NPF, who have six and five MLAs respectively.

NDA MLAs had started reaching Delhi on Sunday after being prompted by the BJP leadership.

“I have told them I couldn’t be part of the meeting to elect a legislative leader unless our conditions are met. And I have kept away,” the Kuki-Zo MLA said. The Kuki-Zo leaders and MLAs had decided in a meeting held in Guwahati on January 13 that they would need written commitment assuring the community of their demand for a separate administration.

The Kuki-Zo MLAs were the first to announce the demand for a separate administration in Guwahati on May 12, 2023, because they could not coexist with the Meitei community. The announcement followed ethnic conflict involving the Meiteis and the Kuki-Zos that erupted on May 3, 2023, leaving over 260 dead and 60,000 displaced.

Meitei leaders, MLAs and organisations are opposed to the idea of a separate administration and have been pushing for the restoration of popular government at the earliest.

It is not yet clear what transpired between the BJP leadership and the BJP Kuki-Zo MLAs on Tuesday, and when the swearing-in of Khemchand, who belongs to the Meitei community, will take place.

A video posted by the Manipur state BJP on X showed Patra, Chugh, Biren Singh and Sharda Devi congratulating Khemchand, conveying unanimity over the election of the new leader. Biren Singh and Khemchand hugged each other with the latter offering him sweets.

The state BJP said: “On behalf of BJP Manipur Pradesh, we wish you great success. Your experience, dedication and leadership will further strengthen the party and serve the aspirations of the people of Manipur.”