- Manipur MLA Yumnam Khemchand Singh elected BJP Legislature Party Leader
- This paves the way for BJP-led government formation in Manipur
- President's Rule in Manipur will complete one year on February 13
Manipur MLA Yumnam Khemchand Singh has been elected Leader of the BJP Legislature Party, paving the way for the formation of a government headed by him in the border state where the President's Rule will complete a year on February 13.
The announcement came after the BJP leadership met the party's MLAs from Manipur and leaders of National Democratic Alliance (NDA) partners in Delhi.
The BJP's central observer for Manipur, Tarun Chugh, and its northeast in-charge, Sambit Patra, attended the meeting.
Khemchand, 61, is considered a non-polarising figure, acceptable across internal party factions during a period of political transition, sources said. Khemchand is seen as a steady administrative choice amid political uncertainty in Manipur; he may be able to bring together organisation, discipline, and low-key authority, rather than mass rhetoric.
Manipur's assembly has been in a state of suspended animation - inactive but not dissolved - after President's Rule came in February 2025.
There are 37 BJP MLAs in Manipur's 60-member assembly. Initially, 32 BJP candidates won the 2022 assembly election. Five Janata Dal (United) candidates out of the six who got elected later defected to the BJP.
The other MLAs include six from the National People's Party, five from the Naga People's Front, five from the Congress, two from the Kuki People's Alliance, one from Janata Dal (United) and three independents.
One seat is vacant after the death of an MLA.
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About Yumnam Khemchand
He's the MLA of Singjamei assembly constituency in Imphal West district. He was appointed cabinet minister in the second term of the government led by former chief minister N Biren Singh in 2022.
Khemchand remained a minister till the imposition of President's Rule in February 2025. During his ministerial tenure, he held key portfolios including municipal administration and housing development (MAHUD), rural development and panchayati raj, and education.
He served as Speaker of the Manipur assembly from 2017 to 2022. Khemchand is known within the BJP as a grassroots organiser with strong organisational credentials.
He was a businessman before he joined active politics. He was also a Taekwondo player whose training began when he was in his teens. He was recently honoured by the Global Traditional Taekwondo Federation in South Korea in recognition of his decades of discipline and mastery of the martial art.
