Past Precedents, Present Crisis: The Case For A Naga CM In Manipur

Manipur observed the second anniversary of the devastating riots that broke out on May 3, 2023, through remembrances and protests.

The deep ethnic cleavage in the state refuses to be bridged and sporadic violence between the Kukis and Meiteis takes the frontier state to the brink of disaster every now and then. 

Three months of President’s Rule (imposed on February 13 this year) has brought little succour. Efforts by Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla to recover the 6,000-odd arms looted from police armouries have not been very successful. 

The easy availability of the looted firearms, as well as the presence of armed cadres of various militant outfits belonging to the two communities, poses a major hurdle to the restoration of rule of law in the state. 

It is only the presence of tens of thousands of troops--the army, Assam Rifles and central armed police forces (CAPFs)--that has kept large-scale ethnic violence in abeyance. 

While President’s Rule was initially welcomed, albeit with some reservations, by many in the state, many have started turning restive. 

The absence of a popular government in the state has hampered efforts to restore lasting peace and bring about a reconciliation between the two warring communities. 

Despite the BJP central leadership’s strenuous efforts, the party’s state unit has failed to reach a consensus on who can be the new chief minister. 

After the party central leadership forced Nongthombam Biren Singh to step down from the chief minister’s post on February 9 this year, factionalism broke out within the party. Many claimants, each backed by a group of MLAs, emerged for the chief minister’s post. 

BJP’s minder for Manipur, Sambit Patra, tried to hammer out a consensus but failed. After five days of intense but futile negotiations Patra held with all the party MLAs, President’s Rule was imposed on February 13.  

Since then, the BJP in Manipur has remained a divided house. 

Demand for end to President’s Rule

The apparent failure of the state government headed by Governor Bhalla to end the ethnic conflict, restore the rule of the law and bring insurgents to heel has triggered disquiet in the state. 

Over the past one month, Manipur’s civil society and pressure groups, as well as the BJP and its allies, have been demanding the formation of a popular government in the state. 

A few weeks ago, 21 MLAs--13 from the BJP, three each from its allies (the National People's Party and the Naga People’s Front) and two Independent MLAs who support the BJP-led alliance in the state--wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah demanding lifting of President’s Rule and formation of a government.

Patra made a two-day trip to the state early last week to explore the possibility of the formation of a new government. He met some Kuki MLAs as well as N Biren Singh, Assembly Speaker Thokchom Satyabrata Singh and a few Meitei MLAs. 

While the Kuki MLAs stuck to their demand for a separate administration for the Kuki-dominated areas in the hill districts of the state, the other MLAs were divided on who they wanted as the chief minister. 

Problem is, there are as many as three strong contenders for the hot seat. They are the current Assembly Speaker, Thokchom Satyabrata Singh, former Speaker Yumnam Khemchand Singh and former minister Thokchom Radheyshyam Singh. 

Satyabrata Singh held multiple portfolios like food & public distribution, law & legislative affairs and labour & employment in the first Biren Singh government (2017-2022) before becoming the Speaker in 2022. 

Khemchand Singh, who was the Speaker from 2017 to 2022, was education and housing minister in the second Biren Singh cabinet (2022 to February 2025). 

Radheyshyam, a former IPS officer, was education, labour & employment minister from 2017 to 2020 before being dropped from the cabinet by Biren Singh. He was made advisor to the chief minister in 2022, but resigned from the post in April 2023. 

Biren Singh, who remains a powerful figure in the state BJP, has refused to back any of these three claimants. 

A couple of senior state BJP leaders told Swarajya that he (Biren Singh) would like a lightweight MLA belonging to his camp to become the chief minister if the party central leadership does not allow him to return to the chief minister’s office.  

Sambit Patra is learnt to have conveyed to the party central leadership that it is impossible to resolve the leadership issue within the state BJP. Making any of the three claimants the chief minister or ignoring Biren Singh can even lead to a split in the party. 

At the same time, continuing with the President's Rule is not a viable option. The ethnic divide in the state cannot be bridged by the Governor or bureaucrats (both in Delhi and Imphal).

Also, the disarming of civilians who possess looted arms cannot happen through a mere administrative fiat and requires the deep involvement of people’s representatives. 

Only a popular government can broker lasting peace by coaxing Meiteis and Kukis to resolve their differences and reach a reconciliation. 

Governor Bhalla, despite his best intentions and hard work, can only ensure a temporary halt to hostilities even as the ethnic fault lines in the state continue to widen and deepen. 

The way out of this crisis

A viable way out of the present political crisis could be to make a Naga MLA the chief minister of the state. 

The Naga People’s Front (NPF), with its five MLAs, has been a steadfast ally of the BJP. The Nagas have adopted a neutral stance in the ongoing two-year-old ethnic strife between the Meiteis and Kukis. 

Despite their earlier animosity with the Kukis that resulted in the fierce clashes (1992 to 1998) and led to more than one thousand deaths and displacement of more than one lakh people, the two communities have more or less settled their differences after protracted negotiations. 

Making a Naga MLA the chief minister of the state could be a smart move on the part of the BJP central leadership. 

A Naga as the Chief Minister will be acceptable to both the Meiteis and Kukis.

A major problem in Manipur is that both the warring communities see the state administration as being biased in favour of the other side. The Kukis accuse the Manipur police of favouring the Meiteis while the Meiteis accuse the central security forces of helping the Kukis, especially Kuki militants. 

The Kukis also accuse the state administration of deliberate neglect in development and aid. 

This ‘development bias’ is a sore point with the Kukis, and also the Nagas. The two tribal groups have long accused successive state governments headed by Meitei Chief Ministers of prioritising the Meitei-dominated Imphal Valley and depriving the hills of development and welfare schemes and projects. 

A Naga chief minister will be seen as setting this right bringing in a much-needed balance in development of all parts of the state.

A Naga Chief Minister can, without being accused of being biased, deal effectively with the militant and radical elements of both the communities. 

Under a Naga Chief Minister, the state administration can take strong measures to disarm civilians, recover looted arms and bring both the valley-based (Meitei) militants as well as the Kuki-Chin militants to book. 

Even strong and punitive actions against militants, radical elements and law-breakers under such an administration will not attract angry accusations of bias. 

A Naga as the Chief Minister would also be best placed to deliver a firm and unequivocal message to the Kukis that Manipur’s territorial integrity is non-negotiable and their demand for a separate administration has to be binned. 

The Nagas of Manipur had, many years ago, raised the demand for integration of the hill areas of Manipur they reside in with Nagaland. 

That had stoked tensions with the Meiteis, but the Nagas realised that redrawing the boundaries of the state would be impossible and dropped their demand. 

Since the Nagas have reconciled their differences with the Meiteis, a Naga Chief Minister would be well placed to urge the Kukis to also accept reality and resolve their differences.

At the same time, a Naga CM would also be best placed to tell the Meiteis to undertake some grand and touching measures that will be endearing to the Kukis. 

Has a Naga ever been the Manipur CM?

The BJP central leadership will have to convince the Meitei MLAs that having a Naga as the chief minister is now the best bet for the state. 

This should not be difficult because Manipur had two Naga chief ministers--and very popular and effective ones at that--in the past. 

Yangmaso Shaiza, a Tangkhul Naga from the Ukhrul district of Manipur, was the chief minister of the state twice: first for just 148 days from July to December 1974, and again for 2.5 years from June 1977 to November 1979. 

Shaiza is regarded as a visionary who forged an understanding and friendship among all ethnic groups in the state. A very popular Chief Minister who enjoyed the confidence of all ethnic groups in the state, Shaiza is remembered for prioritising equitable development of all areas in the state. 

Rishang Keishing, another Tangkhul Naga, also served as the state Chief Minister thrice: the first time for 92 days from November 1980 to February 1981, then for nearly seven years from June 1981 to March 1988 and the third time for three years from December 1994 to December 1997. 

Keishing, who also served two terms each in the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha, is considered to have been one of the tallest politicians of the state. A highly-respected figure, he is credited with running an efficient and responsive government. 

Choosing the right person for the job

There are five Naga MLAs, all belonging to the NPF, in the current Assembly which is under ‘suspended animation’ right now. 

Three of them--Leishyo Keishing, Ram Muivah and Kashim Vashum--are from the state’s northeastern Ukhrul district. One--Loshi Dikho--is from the neighbouring Senapati district in northern Manipur.

Another Naga MLA--Awangbow Newmai--who was elected twice from Manipur’s northwestern Tamenglong district. All these three districts (Ukhrul, Senapati and Tamenglong) border Nagaland to their north. 

Keishing, an electrical engineer who also holds a management degree, served in various central PSUs before taking the plunge into politics.

Muivah is a retired IAS officer who served in various important capacities at the centre as well as the Northeast. 

Vashum, a career politician, was the transport, animal husbandry and veterinary minister in the second Biren Singh ministry (March 2022 to February 2025).

Three-time MLA Dikho was PHE minister in the first Biren Singh ministry (March 2017 to March 2022). 

Newmai, also a three-time MLA, held the forest and environment portfolio in the first Biren Singh ministry and the water resources, relief & disaster management portfolios in the second Biren Singh ministry. 

Thus, three Naga MLAS--Vashum, Dikho and Newmai--have considerable experience as ministers. 

Keishing lacks administrative experience and is untested. But it is perhaps Ram Muivah who comes across as the best candidate for the job. 

Muivah, whose popularity spans all ethnic communities, has taken a number of initiatives on his own to bring about peace in Manipur over the last three years. 

Muivah, a seasoned bureaucrat who also holds a management degree, is non-controversial and is perceived to be a strong and effective leader. Muivah is also on good terms with some senior central BJP leaders.

Known to have been an honest and upright bureaucrat, Muivah enjoys a clean image and is known to be a consensus-builder. He also enjoys good ties with Governor Bhalla, a fellow bureaucrat. 

Having been an IAS officer for over 35 years, Muivah likely knows the intricacies of governance, especially in the Northeast. He also has good ties with the Army and Assam Rifles, and those can come in handy in cleaning up the mess in the violence and militancy-affected state. 

The BJP’s central leadership may need to persuade its Meitei MLAs that appointing a Naga Chief Minister at this juncture could offer a constructive path toward bridging the Meitei-Kuki divide and restoring stability and governance in the state.

Because the current drift cannot continue for long; and if it does, it will plunge the state into an even graver crisis.