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NEW DELHI: BJP on Monday moved to install a popular govt in Manipur, where President’s rule will complete one year on Feb 12, with its legislative party set to elect a new leader.Official sources said BJP MLAs are in the national capital and will be electing a new leader, who will be sworn in as the new chief minister. The party has not officially declared a date for the legislative party meeting and named its general secretary Tarun Chugh as the central observer for the election of the new leader.The Centre had brought the state, where BJP enjoys a majority in the 60-member assembly, under President’s rule on Feb 13 following a long spell of ethnic violence involving Meiteis and Kukis, leading to displacement of the members of two communities to areas where they are dominant .BJP to replace Biren at helm in ManipurPresident’s rule was imposed days after resignation of CM Biren Singh. BJP is expected to bring in a new person to replace Singh, who had been at the helm after the party formed its first govt in 2017 and won again in 2022.Party brass will have to navigate challenging political circumstances as ethnic tensions persist despite incidence of violence coming down sharply.Centre engaged ethnic bodies in talks to defuse the crisis, and PM Modi’s visit to the state in Sept last year was seen as a big step to restore normalcy.Kukis are pushing for administrative autonomy, while Meiteis voiced opposition to any move to undermine the state’s territorial integrity.
