Manipur Polls: Angry With Candidates’ List, BJP Workers Ransack Offices, Some Quit Party

In many places, angry workers pulled down party flags and set them on fire.

Imphal: Upset over preference to turncoats in the Bharatiya Janata Party’s candidate lists, many karyakartas erupted in protest across Manipur on Sunday, January 30.

Angry workers in constituencies with many ticket seekers ransacked mandal offices, pulled down party flags and banners and set them ablaze. However, no untoward incidents were reported at major offices of the party in the state capital and district headquarters, which were put under an unprecedented security cover.

The BJP named its candidates for all the 60 assembly constituencies.

Chief Minister N. Biren Singh had the last laugh with S.S. Olis and son-in-law R.K. Imo securing party tickets. The party fielded the chief minister from his Heiyang assembly segment.

Three sitting MLAs — Y Erabot Singh of Wangkei A/C, P Saratchandra of Moirang A/C and M Rameshwar Singh of Kakching A/C were dropped.


The party fielded Congress turncoat Okram Henry Singh whose election was nullified by the high court of Manipur for withholding information in his election affidavit filed in 2017. Henry is the nephew of former Congress chief minister Okram Ibobi.

Also read: Manipur Congress MLA, Whose Drug Case Involvement BJP Had Made a Poll Issue, Joins Saffron Party

BJP also chose M Prithviraj and Y Surchandra over P Saratchandra and M Rameshwar Singh for Moirang and Kakching assembly seats respectively.

Protesting against the candidature of Congress turncoat RK Imo Singh who switched over to the BJP in November last year, BJP workers ransacked the Sagolband mandal office and declared abolition of madal.

As anticipated, with the announcement of BJP’s candidate, those who did not get a party ticket, resigned from the primary membership of the party and joined other parties. While Erabot decided to opt for the NPP and another BJP ticket seeker Ratankumar joined Janata Dal (United) in Wangkhei constituency. Meanwhile angry supporters of P Saratchandra pledged allegiance to the Congress.

Protests within Congress camp

The Congress, meanwhile, has announced its first list of 40 candidates. Upset over having been denied a Congress ticket, workers affiliated to former Hiyanglam MLA and Manipur Pradesh Congress Committee vice-president Dr Elangbam Dwijamani resigned from primary membership of the party. Dwijamani and his supporters also burned Congress flags and banners to register their strong protest against party leadership.


Sources said the Congress, which had bagged 28 seats in the 2017 election, is planning to enter into a pre-poll alliance with some Left parties. The candidates for the remaining 20 seats will be announced after finalising the seat sharing deal with the Left parties, they added.

The NPP had also announced its first list of 20 candidates for Manipur assembly elections. The party, which has four sitting MLAs and is currently in alliance with the BJP, is going alone in the upcoming election and has fielded candidates against its ally in all the seats.

Manipur will go to polls in two phases. First phase voting is scheduled for February 27 and voting for the second phase, on March 3. Notification will be issued on February 1 for the first phase and on February 4 for the second. The last date for filing nominations for the first phase is February 8 and for phase two, February 11. The scrutiny will be held on February 9 and February 14 for phase one and phase two, respectively. Counting of votes will take place on March 10.

This report was first published on The Frontier Manipur. Read the original here.