The announcement of the list of candidates for Manipur by the BJP on Sunday triggered resignations and violent confrontations between those finding their names in the list and those failing to get in and losing the race to the fresh defectors to the BJP.
Violent clashes have been reported in the BJP offices in the State.
BJP supporters burnt effigies of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh and shouted slogans as protests erupted after the party named candidates for next month's elections, leaving many disappointed.
Protesters waved placards and raised slogans .
Party offices were ransacked in various parts of the state and protesters gathered in several areas with placards. Security has been stepped up around the BJP headquarters in Imphal.
A few party functionaries who were hoping to get tickets have resigned .
According to sources, most of the disgruntled leaders were those who were not selected to accommodate defectors from the Congress.
At least 10 former Congress leaders who joined the BJP were given tickets as the BJP announced it would contest all 60 seats in the Manipur assembly elections, releasing a list of its candidates.
Chief Minister N Biren Singh will contest from his traditional seat in Heingang. Another key minister in Manipur, Biswajit Singh, will contest from Thongju seat. Former national footballer Somatai Saiza will contest from Ukhrul.
In the 2017 election, the BJP won 21 seats but formed the government with the help of smaller parties and independent MLAs. Of these, 19 MLAs have been given party tickets and three have been dropped.
The Manipur BJP has fielded only three women and one Muslim candidate. Former Manipur Congress chief who joined the BJP, Govindas Konthoujam, has also got a party ticket to contest the election.
Most loyalists of the Chief Minister have got party tickets, sources said
Earlier this week, despite BJP’s efforts to prevent its ticket seekers from switching over to other parties, one of its aspiring candidates, Lourembam Sanjoy Singh had joined the NPP.
The unrest is also fuelled on account of leaders of other parties in the state joining the saffron party ahead of the elections, making the competition for ticket aspirants
tougher.
On January 24, the BJP Kakching Mandal Yuva Morcha and Mahila Morcha had warned the party leadership not to give tickets to former Congress MLA of Kakching constituency, Y Surchandra, three days after he switched over to the BJP.
On Saturday Lourembam Sanjoy resignation and joining NPP is the first casualty inflicted on BJP over the issue of ticket distribution, ahead of the Manipur assembly polls, scheduled on February 27 and March 3. While welcoming Sanjoy, NPP national vice-president and deputy chief minister
Y Joykumar Singh said more aspiring candidates from BJP, are on the verge of joining NPP.
NPP is currently in the BJP coalition government but the BJP is not sure that it would extend the helping hand again in the post-poll scenario.
After lot of delay the BJP list for Manipur which was to be announced on January 24, the party released its list for the state on Sunday.
The BJP will contest all 60 seats in the Manipur assembly elections, said the party General Secretary Bhupendra Yadav and state-in-charge Sambit Patra here
on Sunday while releasing a full list of its candidates.
"The BJP has run the government in Manipur with peace and development. In Manipur, the party will fight vigorously on all 60 seats. We have fixed the names of the candidates on all the seats. CM N Biren Singh will contest from Heingang constituency. Most of the tickets have been given to those people who have worked for the BJP for a long time. People related to sports, administrative and academics have also been given tickets," Yadav said here at a joint press conference.
The party will retain the state and will win two third majority in the state, claimed Yadav and Patra .
Patra said Prime Minister Modi wearing Manipur stol during the Republic day parade reflects how close Manipur is to his heart.
