Manipur CM, 1 Cong MLA, 6 ex legislators leave for Delhi

Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh left for New Delhi by a chartered flight on Sunday with one Congress MLA and six ex MLAs who resigned from the house and the primary membership of the party.

The lone Congress MLA who left for New Delhi in the special chartered flight along with the Manipur Chief Minister was R K Imo Singh.

Imo Singh Congress MLA is the son-in-law of N Biren Singh.

Before leaving, Biren Singh said that he and the present and former MLAs would meet the BJP central leadership in the national capital to personally introduce and to invite them to join the party.

The six ex Congress MLAs who left with the Manipur chief minister had submitted their resignation from the Assembly on August 10 and quit the party on August 11.

They are among the eight Congress legislators who had defied a party whip last week and skipped the one-day session of the assembly, in which the BJP-led N Biren Singh government had comfortably won the confidence vote.

The six are Okram Henry Singh, Oinam Lukhoi Singh, Md Abdul Nasir, Ngamthang Haokip, Ginsuanhau and Paonam Brojen.

Okram Henry Singh is the nephew of Congress Legislature Party leader Okram Ibobi Singh.

Congress, which had won a total of 28 seats to emerge as the single largest party in the 60-member Manipur house after the 2017 polls, saw members deserting it from time to time.

Soon after the election, one of its legislator Thounaojam Shyamkumar was disqualified under the anti-defection law for joining BJP.

Further, three Congress MLAs - Kshetrimayum Biren Singh, Yengkhom Surchandra Singh and Sanasam Bira Singh- were disqualified from membership of Manipur Assembly by the speaker.

The six who accompanied the chief minister are the latest additions to the list.