New Delhi: The Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) move to not formally name a chief ministerial face ahead of the Manipur assembly elections has triggered speculation over the future of incumbent CM N. Biren Singh. But Union minister and the party’s state in-charge Bhupender Yadav has said such decisions are taken “democratically”, and BJP MLAs and the parliamentary board will take the call on the next CM.
In an exclusive interview with ThePrint, Yadav said Biren Singh has provided “the state with wonderful governance during his term”.
The BJP high command’s silence on the CM face for Manipur had led to rumours in Imphal’s political circles that it might repeat its move in Assam last year, when it won its second consecutive election but still replaced incumbent Sarbananda Sonowal with Himanta Biswa Sarma. But Yadav played down the seriousness of the BJP not announcing a CM face.
“The BJP is a democratic party in the true sense. All questions of leadership are taken democratically. The party’s MLAs and the parliamentary board decide on such questions,” he said.
Commenting on the BJP’s future in Manipur, Yadav said he can “only see things looking up” for the state and the state unit.
“Our future is intertwined with the future of the people of Manipur. If they progress, we progress. We successfully ran the government for five years under the chief ministership of N. Biren Singh ji. In this election, we are contesting all 60 seats on our own. Our cadre and karyakartas are highly motivated in the state,” he added.
Manipur will vote in two phases on 27 February and 5 March to elect 60 members of its legislative assembly. The results will be announced on 10 March. In Manipur, the BJP is competing against the Congress, as well as Conrad Sangma’s National People’s Party (NPP) and the Naga People’s Front (NPF). The NPP and NPF are part of the present BJP government in the state, and the NPP and the BJP are allies in the Sangma-led government in Meghalaya.
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‘Unemployment claims misleading’
Yadav expressed confidence that the BJP will return to power, and dismissed the opposition’s allegations of unemployment and lack of development in Manipur in the last five years.
“I don’t expect the Congress to acknowledge the work we have done because it will amount to acknowledging their failures. Everyone knows what was happening in Manipur five years ago, before we got the mandate to govern. Such a beautiful, culturally vibrant state with so much potential became a victim of insurgency under the Congress regime,” he claimed.
On the issue of unemployment, the opposition’s claims have been misleading, said the Union Minister of Labour and Employment, as well as Environment, Forest and Climate Change.
“According to the latest data, the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) added 14.60 lakh net subscribers in December 2021, registering a 16.4 per cent year-on-year jump compared with 12.54 lakh net subscribers added during the corresponding month previous year,” he said.
“According to EPFO, approximately 5.49 lakh net subscribers exited but rejoined EPFO by opting to continue their membership with EPFO by transferring their PF accumulations from the previous to present PF account instead of opting for final withdrawal. Data from the EPFO shows the number of members exiting EPFO has been on a decline since July 2021,” the minister added.
‘BJP does not try to poach people’
On the Manipur Congress asking its candidates to pledge loyalty fearing horse-trading, Yadav said “one can only laugh at this”.
“Did we buy Ashwani Kumar? Did we buy Sushmita Dev? That list, as you know, is endless. Leaders who are leaving the party are telling the Congress the truth about why they are leaving. But the ‘first family’ doesn’t want to listen to the genuine grievances of its own leaders,” he said, adding that the BJP is “a party of principles” which does not try to poach people.
“If someone wants to join us, our party’s leadership decides on that,” he further said.
Like it did in Uttarakhand and Goa, where polling concluded recently, the BJP is talking up “a double-engine government” (BJP rule at the Centre and state) in Manipur as well.
“The key issue for the BJP is development. In early January, PM Shri Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone for 22 development projects worth Rs 4,815 crore. Over the last five years, the Biren Singh-led government has worked towards giving shape to PM Modi’s vision for the development and growth of the Northeast,” Yadav said.
The BJP is now presenting its “report card” to the people and asking them to vote for the party “on the merit of our work”. “We are also highlighting how a double-engine government helped bring faster development to the state,” he added.
On AFSPA & allies
In its recently released manifesto, the BJP has not made any mention of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA), 1958 — a controversial Act that gives the armed forces wide-ranging powers to maintain public order in ‘disturbed areas’ — for which it has been criticised by the Congress.
“We are committed to peace and stability in the state to ensure its all-round development and happiness and prosperity of the people. The BJP government will do whatever is necessary to achieve that goal,” said Yadav.
When probed further about the party’s stand on AFSPA, he said: “I think I have already answered that. We are committed to the peace and stability of the country and the happiness and prosperity of all its people.”
The BJP has decided to contest Manipur without its allies NPP and NPF amid talk of strain in ties over the years. But Yadav refuted this chatter.
“No, that is not the right deduction. Over five years, we worked hard and earned people’s goodwill, so we decided to go it alone. But our relationship with our allies hasn’t been impacted,” said Yadav.
Asked about the prospects of a post-poll alliance with NPP and NPF, the BJP leader said his party is confident of winning over 40 seats in the assembly, and “my personal assessment is that we will easily achieve our target”.
The inclusion of many Congress turncoats in the BJP’s candidates’ list for Manipur had triggered violent protests from the BJP functionaries and leaders, claiming they were overlooked during ticket distribution.
To this, Yadav responded: “The BJP is only dependent on the merit of its own work. If someone comes to our party because the person comes to believe in our ideology and the leadership of PM Modi, he or she is welcome. We run pro-incumbency governments. On 10 March, you will see the result of our governance mode.”
(Edited by Gitanjali Das)
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