Will Biren Singh return as CM? Manipur BJP chief responds

Imphal: The next chief minister of Manipur will be decided together by the BJP parliamentary board along with the state unit, state party president A Sharda Devi said on Thursday.

The party will be ready once the governor invites the party to form the next government, she said.

BJP is set to cross the majority mark in the 60-member state assembly.

"As a national party we have a parliamentary board, which in consultation with the state unit will decide who will be the next chief minister," Devi said when asked if there will be a new chief minister or N Biren Singh will continue in office.

On how long it will take for the party to decide, she said "As per rule the governor will invite the winning party once the full results are out. So the process of government formation will happen and other processes will follow and by then we will be ready."

Earlier in the day, Devi said that BJP's impressive show in the Manipur assembly elections is a reflection of people's acceptance of the party and its governance.

Buoyant about BJP's win, she said the party will not only be able to meet its target of emerging victorious on its own, but also defeat big personalities of rival parties.

"This time we've been able to do well in areas where we have not won before. The party has gained majorly in pockets which are considered Congress strongholds. It shows that the people of Manipur have accepted us and the governance we've provided,” she told PTI here in an interview.

Apart from targeting 40-plus seats, Devi asserted, "We had also set out to defeat big opponents of other parties in this election. I believe we have achieved that target as well."

She also said local parties like the NPF and NPP have hinted at supporting the BJP.

On what message she would like to send to the Congress, which is leading in just three seats, the BJP leader said it's the people of Manipur who will decide the future, growth and development of the state and elected political leaders should only follow their orders.

“The Congress should always remember that,” she added.

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