IN 2021, THE ORGANISER described N. Biren Singh as the Jose Mourinho of Indian politics. “Singh, too, is a maverick,” said the RSS mouthpiece. “Singh, too, is a special one.”
A possible comparison, because both Mourinho and the Manipur chief minister were professional footballers in the 1980s. Singh had more on-field success than Mourinho―he thrice represented Manipur in the Santosh Trophy, and was in the Border Security Force team that beat Mohun Bagan to win the Durand Cup in 1981. Mourinho, for his part, could not rise beyond the lower rungs of the Portuguese league.
But “maverick” and “special”? Yes, again. After hanging up his boots in the 1990s, Singh started Naharolgi Thoudang (Duty of the youths), a daily that quickly became known for stories so hard-hitting that he was once arrested and charged with sedition. The arrest was what led him to contest polls in 2002, with his journalist and football pals pooling money to meet expenses.
Since being elected as chief minister in 2017, Singh has been battling one of the world’s longest running insurgencies. This year, which saw deadly ethnic clashes that drew worldwide attention, has been particularly disastrous for him. The only silver lining is that he may have finally proven worthy of the label of being the ‘special one’ in Indian politics. He has managed to hold on to power despite the barrage of criticism his government has received for apparently doing little to contain the clashes that killed around 200 people, injured more than 1,000, and driven more than 70,000 people from their homes.
As critics have pointed out, the CM has “no leg to stand on”, but he is still in the play.