BJP to support NPF candidate in Outer Manipur Lok Sabha seat: CM N Biren Singh

Imphal: Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh has said that his party BJP will support the Naga People's Front (NPF) candidate in Outer Manipur Lok Sabha seat in the upcoming general elections.

The decision to support the NPF nominee in Outer Manipur seat, one of the two Lok Sabha constituencies in the state, was taken by the BJP's highest decision-making authority headed by party president J P Nadda.

'Following the decision by @BJP4India under the guidance of Shri @JPNadda ji, and upholding our alliance principles, I am delighted to share that BJP will lend its support to Lok Sabha candidate of NPF in the Outer Manipur constituency for the forthcoming parliamentary elections in 2024,' Singh wrote on X on Friday evening.

The NPF, which is an ally of the BJP government in the northeastern state, has nominated former Indian Revenue Service officer K Timothy Zimik for the seat.

Zimik hails from Ukhrul district and had served as the principal chief commissioner of the income tax department.

The BJP is yet to announce its nominee for Inner Manipur Lok Sabha constituency.

Party sources said incumbent MP RK Ranjan, BJP President A Sharda Devi and Rajya Sabha MP L Sanajaoba are contenders for a ticket for the seat.

Inner Manipur and some areas of Outer Manipur will vote in the first phase on April 19, while the remaining segments of Outer Manipur will go to poll in phase 2 on April 26.

Those living in camps in violence-hit Manipur will be allowed to vote from their temporary settlements, Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar said on March 16, the day the Lok Sabha poll schedule was announced.

Ethnic clashes between the Meitei and tribal Kuki communities in Manipur since May last year have resulted in the loss of over 200 lives.