N. Biren Singh will continue as the chief minister of Manipur where the Bharatiya Janata Party returned to power for the second time in a row after the recently held Assembly elections.
Union Finance Minister and BJP's central observer for Manipur Nirmala Sitharaman made the announcement in Imphal after she held a meeting with the newly elected party MLAs in the state capital. Union Law and Justice Minister Kiren Rijiju, a co-observer of the party, was also present at the meeting.
Singh, along with other two contenders—Biswajit Singh and Yumnam Khemchand—had met the party leadership in Delhi on Saturday.
Sitharaman said Singh was elected the BJP legislature party leader unanimously.
"It is a good decision taken unanimously by everyone. It will ensure that Manipur has a stable and responsible government,” she said, adding that the central government under the leadership of Prime Minister of Narendra Modi gives special attention to Northeastern states.
The BJP has returned to power in Manipur by winning 32 seats in the 60-member House.
It had managed to form a government in 2017 despite having just 21 seats compared to Congress's 28, by joining hands with two local parties NPP and NPF.
However, this time around, the BJP contested alone and managed to win a majority on the plank that a vote for the party would bring peace to the troubled state both in the valley and the hills where tribals hold the ground.
