New Delhi: A day after Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won an absolute majority in the Manipur assembly elections, bagging 32 out of 60 seats in the insurgency-ridden state, Chief Minister N. Biren Singh, along with three of his cabinet ministers, tendered his resignation to Governor La Ganesan on Friday.
Although the Governor accepted his resignation, Singh has been asked to serve as the caretaker CM till the new chief minister is sworn in.
Taking to his Twitter handle, CM Biren Singh wrote, “Called on Hon'ble Governor of Manipur at the Raj Bhavan to tender my resignation from the post of Chief Minister today. I will now be serving as the caretaker Chief Minister.”
In response to the congratulatory messages from the prime minister, central ministers and other leaders from across the country, on the thumping victory in the north-eastern state, Singh tweeted, “The entire party karyakarta is thankful to our Hon'ble PM Shri Narendra Modi ji for his guidance and relentless efforts in bringing peace and development in the state. With this decisive win, we are marching ahead to achieve greater heights under your able leadership.”
It is to be noted that in the northeastern region, after Assam, the saffron party, securing absolute majority, retained power in Manipur for the second consecutive term.
The 61-year-old Congress-turned-BJP leader retained his stronghold Heingang seat for the fifth time in a row, defeating his Congress rival Pangeijam Saratchandra Singh by a margin of 18,271 votes.
According to party sources, the BJP central leadership is likely to decide on the chief ministerial face within the next couple of days.
Earlier, the BJP had informally declared that Singh will be the party's chief ministerial face and will head the next government in Manipur.