The Wire Staff 
New Delhi: The Union home ministry has noted in formal communication that Manipur has been placed under President’s Rule, days after the resignation of chief minister N. Biren Singh, on Thursday (February 13).
The gazetted notification signed by President Droupadi Murmu says that she has “received a report from the Governor of the State of Manipur and after considering the report and other information received by me, I am satisfied that a situation has arisen in which the Government of that State cannot be carried on in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution of India.”
The state’s residents will be under Union government’s direct rule after 23 years as President’s Rule is imposed.
Under Article 356 of the constitution, Murmu can assume to herself, as president of India, all functions of the government of the state of Manipur and all powers vested in or exercisable by the Manipur governor.
The powers of the legislature of Manipur shall be exercisable by or under the authority of parliament.
The move comes despite the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) veteran Sambit Patra attempting to drum up support for a party chief minister in the state in the past two days.
The imposition of President’s Rule marks a pivotal moment in Manipur’s ongoing struggle with ethnic violence, which has persisted for nearly 21 months.
In his first reaction to President’s Rule, Paolienlal Haokip, a Kuki MLA from the BJP, said, “It is 260-lives lost, 60k+ IDPs, 200+ burnt villages, 7000+ burnt houses and generational trauma late.”
The state has been marred by a series of violent incidents, including gunfights and drone bombings, leading to widespread displacement, loss of life and sharp divisions.
“The President’s Rule is more preferable than a change of chief minister. The Kuki-Zo do not trust Meitei anymore, so a new Meitei chief minister is still far from comforting. President’s Rule will give a ray of hope to the Kuki-Zo, and we believe that it will be one step closer to our political solution. With the President’s Rule, I believe the groundwork to end violence will begin, which will pave the way for a conducive environment for political dialogue,” Ginza Vualzong, Indigenous Tribal Leaders Forum (ITLF) leader, said.
Speaking to The Wire, BJP ally National People’s Party (NPP) MLA Nurul Hassan asserted that “peace and normalcy in the state” is their priority.
“It’s animated suspension and we are closing monitoring political development and our priority is peace and normalcy in the sate of Manipur,” Hassan said.
On Thursday, Biren Singh wrote a post on X on the illegal immigration issue essentially making an effort to go down as a hero.
“Our land and identity are under threat. With a small population and limited resources, we stand vulnerable. I monitored and detected illegal immigration tirelessly until May 2, 2023. But after the tragic events of 3rd May, 2023 our state machinery has struggled to respond effectively,” he wrote.
Biren Singh’s resignation was precipitated by mounting pressure from both opposition parties and dissenting voices within the BJP. The National People’s Party, a key ally, had earlier withdrawn its support, citing dissatisfaction with his handling of the crisis. It has since returned, citing that it was only opposed to Biren.
The BJP has lost the backing of 10 Kuki MLAs (three from their alliance and seven from the BJP). Additionally, a few Meitei MLAs had also been markedly unhappy with Biren Singh and had reached out to the central leadership several times, but to no avail.
Fresh ammunition was added to the rebellion in the form of a lab report on an audio tape purporting to feature Biren Singh’s voice that was submitted to a judicial commission set up by the Union home ministry.
The Truth Lab said in a report to the Supreme Court on February 3 that samples of Biren Singh’s voice were a “93%” match to the voice in the leaked audio tape that brought his role in Manipur’s ethnic violence under scrutiny.
It remains to be seen how Manipur fares under direct Union government administration.
Commenting on the development, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh wrote on X, “Finally what the Indian National Congress has been demanding for almost 20 months has happened. President’s Rule has been imposed in Manipur. This has come after what the Supreme Court called ‘the absolute breakdown of constitutional machinery in the state’ which saw the killing of over 300 people and displacement of over 60,000 men, women, and children since May 3, 2023.”
He added: “This has come after the fabric of Manipur’s society has been allowed to be severely damaged, if not totally destroyed. This has come after the BJP and its allies got a huge majority in Feb 2022, but whose politics led to the colossal tragedy just fifteen months later. This has come after the Union Home Minister has clearly failed to manage Manipur, which had been entrusted to him by the PM. This has come even as the globe-trotting PM steadfastly refuses to visit Manipur and begin the process of reconciliation.”
Similarly, Leader of Opposition (LoP) in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi called the move a “belated admission by the BJP of their complete inability to govern in Manipur”.