New Delhi: Speculation is rife over the BJP’s next move in Manipur as President’s rule will complete a year in the northeastern state next month and no clear words yet on the possibility of re-installation of a popular government.
The 60-member Manipur Assembly is under suspended animation ever since President’s rule was imposed on February 13, 2025 following months of ethnic violence between Meitei and Kuki communities and the Assembly’s five year tenure will come to an end in March 2027.
Several rounds of talks were held by the BJP’s Northeast coordinator
Sambit Patra with the party’s Meitei and Kuki MLAs separately, sources said. On December 14, 2025, BJP’s national general secretary (organisation) B L Santhosh and Patra met party’s legislators from both warring communities under one roof.
Over 30 BJP MLAs attended the meeting, including Speaker of the Manipur Legislative Assembly T Satyabrata Singh and former chief minister N Biren Singh.
Among the seven BJP MLAs from the Kuki community, four participated in the meeting while three Kuki MLAs could not attend apparently due to some unavoidable reasons, sources said.
So far there have been no word from the BJP whether there is a possibility of formation of a popular government before the completion of one year, the sources said.
If a government could not assume charge in coming weeks, a statutory resolution will have to be adopted in both Houses of Parliament in the first part of the ongoing budget session for the extension of the President’s rule, they said.
A total of 32 BJP MLAs won the 2022 Assembly elections. The JD(U) won six seats and five of them later defected to the BJP. So, the BJP currently has 37 MLAs.
There are six National People’s Party (NPP) MLAs, five Naga People’s Front, five Congress, two Kuki People’s Alliance (KPA), one Janata Dal (United), three
Independents. There is one vacant seat following the death of a sitting MLA.