According to the party, Md. Abdul Nasir, the only JD(U) MLA in the state, will be on the opposition benches. To allay rumors about its connections to the BJP, the Janata Dal (United) said on Wednesday that it has fired Ksh. Biren Singh, the president of its Manipur chapter.
Singh’s dismissal was attributed to his lack of discipline, according to JD(U) national spokesperson Rajiv Ranjan, who told PTI that the party would continue to back the BJP-led administration in the northeastern state.
“Our party has worked diligently to strengthen the NDA and will continue to do so,” he stated.
State JD(U) head Ksh Biren Singh wrote to Manipur Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla, saying, “Six JD (U)-sponsored candidates were returned in the February/March 2022 election for the state assembly of Manipur. Five JD (U) MLAs switched to the BJP after a few months. The Speaker’s Tribunal is still considering the five MLAs’ Tenth Schedule of India trial.
“After JD (U) became part of India Bloc, support to the BJP led government was withdrawn by JD(U)… as such, seating arrangement of the lone MLA of JD(U) in Manipur Md Abdul Nasir is made in the opposition bench in the last session of the Assembly by the Speaker,” the letter stated.
According to the head of the party unit, Md. Abdul Nasir, the state’s only JD(U) MLA, will be seated on the opposition benches.
However, as the BJP holds 37 seats in the 60-member assembly and is backed by three independents and five Naga People’s Front MLAs, the withdrawal will not affect the Biren Singh government.
The JD(U) received 12% of the vote in the northeastern state and won six seats in the 2022 assembly elections. In 2000, the party was elected to the Manipur assembly for the first time.
However, five JD(U) MLAs joined the BJP in September of that year. “Is it proper?” asked Nitish Kumar, who had joined Lalu Prasad’s Rashtriya Janata Dal and quit the NDA less than a month ago. Is it constitutional? Does it adhere to accepted norms?
Nitish Kumar rejoined the NDA in January of last year and was sworn in for the eighth time as Bihar’s chief minister. The JD(U) with 12 MPs remained in the NDA after the BJP failed to achieve a majority in the Lok Sabha elections despite winning 240 seats.
In Bihar, where assembly elections are set for October or November of this year, the BJP is a key ally of the government led by Nitish Kumar.
