Manipur Chief Minister N. Biren Singh stepped down yesterday, nearly two years after ethnic violence erupted in the state. His resignation comes as an effort to address growing dissent within the state BJP regarding his leadership, especially with his government facing the threat of a no-confidence motion from Congress and an impending floor test.

Yesterday evening, the Chief Minister gave his resignation to the Governor. According to the congress, the "belated" resignation is a vindication of their demand.

Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla informed that with the Chief Minister's resignation, the Manipur assembly’s budget session that started yesterday was cancelled. Although the BJP still holds a majority despite Conrad Sangma's National People's Party withdrawing its support, there was a chance that the MLAs demanding a leadership change might have defied the party whip if a floor test had taken place. The Chief Minister resigned after consulting the central leadership to avoid that possibility.

Yesterday morning, Mr Singh visited Delhi, where he met party chief JP Nadda and chief strategist Union Minister Amit Shah.

According to party sources, around 12 MLAs have been actively advocating for a leadership change, citing the ethnic violence that erupted in May 2023. Additionally, about six MLAs remain undecided. The sources also mentioned that the Speaker and the chief minister have had "differences."

There has been news that a few rebels have met Amit Shah with demands. Sources indicated that, with the Congress planning a no-confidence motion in the assembly session, there was a possibility of avoiding a floor test. They also mentioned that the BJP, after securing victories in the Maharashtra, Haryana and Delhi assembly elections, wanted to prevent a political crisis that could overshadow its positive momentum.

Manipur BJP chief A Sharda Devi told reporters that the Chief Minister decided to safeguard the state's integrity and prioritise public welfare. Sharda Devi said, "Since 2017, Biren Singh has been working tirelessly for the development of Manipur. His resignation reflects his deep commitment to safeguarding the state's integrity ". She also said that it has not yet been decided who Mr Singh's successor will be.

Congress' Rahul Gandhi has made scathing comments on X. "The resignation of CM Biren Singh shows that mounting public pressure, the SC investigation and the no-confidence motion by the Congress have forced a reckoning," the post said.

"For nearly two years, BJP's CM Biren Singh instigated division in Manipur. PM Modi allowed him to continue despite the violence, loss of life, and the destruction of the idea of India in Manipur," he wrote.

"The Congress was all set to move a no-confidence motion against the Chief Minister and his Council of Ministers in the Manipur assembly tomorrow. Sensing the climate, the Manipur CM has just resigned," read a post on X from Jairam Ramesh. "This was a demand that the Congress has been making since early May 2023, when Manipur erupted. The CM's resignation was belated. The people of Manipur now await a visit by our Frequent Flier PM, who is off to France and the USA now - and who has found neither the time nor the inclination to go to Manipur these past twenty months," he further wrote.

Protests against Biren Singh intensified when an individual from the Kuki community moved to the Supreme Court, where the Chief Minister was accused of inciting violence in the state. His complaint was based on leaked audio recordings that were allegedly of the Chief Minister.

Truth Labs, a non-profit private forensic laboratory, proved that 93% of the audio tapes matched Mr Singh's voice. The Supreme Court has requested a report from the Central Forensic Science Laboratory regarding the leaked audio tapes.