Imphal: Nongthombam Biren Singh took oath as the Chief Minister of Manipur in Imphal on Monday. Five members of Biren's new cabinet were also sworn in at Manipur Raj Bhawan by governor La Ganesan. They included Nemcha Kipgen, Y. Khemchand Singh, Th. Biswajit Singh, Awangbou Newmai, and Govindas Konthoujam.
The swearing-in took place after 10 days of deliberation in the BJP on whether Biren would get the second term as Chief Minister. The party finally broke the suspense on Sunday by announcing that he would continue as CM in the northeast state. On Sunday, Nirmala Sitharaman, one of the BJP central observers, announced that Biren was unanimously elected as the leader of the BJP legislature and as such will continue as the Chief Minister.
Following it, Biren visited Governor La Ganesan and staked claim to form the government. Announcing the party's decision, Nirmala Sitharaman had said, "It is a good decision taken unanimously by everyone. It will ensure that Manipur has a stable and responsible government which will build further because the Centre today under the leadership of PM Modi gives special attention to Northeastern states."
Who is Biren Singh?
On the results that were announced on March 10, N Biren Singh had retained Heingang constituency for the fifth consecutive term by defeating his nearest Congress rival Pangeijam Saratchandra Singh with a margin of over 18,000 votes. A known footballer and a former journalist, Singh first entered politics in 2002 when he had joined the Democratic Revolutionary Peoples' Party, a Manipur-based regional political party. In the same year, he switched over to Congress where he was given the post of Vigilance Minister in the Cabinet led by the then Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh.
Before joining politics, Singh was known for his love for football. He had also joined the Border Security Force (BSF) in sports quota but later quit his job for journalism. Singh had successfully launched and edited a vernacular newspaper Naharolgi Thoudang in 1992 and continued to work as its editor till 2001. During the tenure of the then Congress government led by CM Okram Ibobi Singh between 2002 and 2017, Biren Singh was given several important portfolios like Irrigation, Flood Control, Youth Affairs and Sports.
Biren was also known as one of the close aides of the Okram. However, Singh decided to quit the Congress owing to some differences with the rank and file of the grand old party and joined the BJP in 2016. In 2017, Biren Singh not only won the Heingang constituency on a saffron ticket, but also brought the BJP to power by forging an alliance with NPP, NPF, LJP, and TMC. Singh was elected leader of the BJP legislature party and assumed the office of the Chief Minister of Manipur on March 15, 2017.
While sources in the BJP initially indicated that there would not be any change of guard in the state, the silence of the party top brass had led people in the state to speculate. While Biren Singh was always a strong contender for the top slot, the name of former Minister Th Biswajit Singh had also cropped up. Biswajit was seen as one of the frontrunners for the chief minister's post along with Biren -- both of whom went to Delhi along with other senior leaders after election results were announced.
READ: N Biren Singh to continue as Manipur CM, announces BJP
