Shah meets Biren amid buzz over formation of new govt in Manipur

NEw DelhiUnion place government government minister Amit shah of iran met former Manipur chief minister Biren Singh at his abode in New Delhi for a late night meeting on Friday with people aware of the development saying that the talks focused on building “a conducive environment” for the formation of a government in the northeastern state.Shah’s office had called Biren on Friday morning for a meeting at the home minister’s residence, the people quoted above said. However, no official statement has been released either by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) or the Union home ministry.“The meeting lasted for almost an hour. We are told that the meeting began post 10pm on Friday. Issues related to formation of a government in the state, which is under President’s Rule, were discussed. The meeting was basically about laying groundwork before having a state government. The existing challenges were also discussed,” a Manipur official aware of the matter said.The official added that while there is no timeline set on restoration of the government or choosing the new chief minister, the central leadership is keen on restoring a popular government and do away with President’s Rule,which has been in place for the last 11 months.This is home minister Amit Shah’s second meeting related to Manipur in the last fortnight.On January 2, Shah had held a security review in the state with governor Ajay Bhalla, security advisor Kuldiep Singh, the state’s chief secretary and the police chief. On January 14, MHA representatives held a meeting with Kuki-Zo civil society bodies to take their views on the government formation in Manipur and note their objections.The following day, the MHA also held talks with a group of representatives from insurgent groups under the Suspension of Operation(SoO) pact with the Centre. The influential SoO groups have told the 10 Kuki-Zo MLAs to take part in formation of government and support their colleagues only if the new government commits to working on having a separate Union territory comprising hill districts for the Kuki-Zo community.The ethnic violence in the state between Meiteis and Kukis was triggered in May 2023 and has left at least 260 people dead and displaced 60,000. The ethnic violence has continued sporadically despite the deployment of thousands of security personnel. President’s Rule was imposed in Manipur on February 13, 2025, after Biren Singh resigned as chief minister.On February 13, it will be one year of President’s Rule in Manipur. On December 14, the meetings of all BJP MLAs(Meitei and Kuki-Zo) for the first time was chaired by BJP general secretary BL Santosh in New Delhi. This has also led to people in the state to believe that the national leadership is looking to form a government in Manipur. After ethnic clashes broke out on May 3, 2023, the 10 Kuki-Zo MLAs refused to visit Imphal valley citing security concerns and distanced themselves from supporting former CM Biren Singh.