Imphal: Manipur Chief Minister and leader of the BJP Manipur Pradesh N Biren Singh on Friday exuded an air of confidence in retaining the Inner Manipur Lok Sabha seat by his party candidate after declaring the election results on June 4, 2024.
He was speaking to the newsmen after casting his vote at the 2/16 Srivan Higher Secondary School Polling Station in his assembly constituency Heingang in Imphal East district on Friday, the day Manipur witnessed elections to the two LS seats.
N Biren said that the people especially the voters are being trusted by the BJP-led governments at the centre and state for its announcement of keeping the territorial integrity of Manipur intact. In the last LS election (2019) for the Inner Manipur seat, the BJP candidate Rajkumar Ranjan Singh captured the seat. This time also the BJP is setting up its candidate, Thounaojam Basantakumar Singh in the Inner Manipur seat.
Meanwhile, Okram Ibobi Singh, former Manipur chief minister and leader of the opposition Congress in the state assembly, told the media men that the first phase of elections which ended on Friday, the elections were not free and fair indeed as many unwanted incidents were violating the election code of conducts issued by the Election Commission of India.
K Meghachandra Singh, president of the Manipur Pradesh Congress Committee also said that he had filed a complaint to the ECI for issuing repolling orders in some polling stations affected by the violence in the first phase of elections.
However, Angomcha Bimol Akoijam Congress candidate for the Inner Manipur LS seat, after ending the election, said that he has full confidence in capturing the said seat with huge margins of votes against his opponents.
In the Inner Manipur LS seat, a total of six candidates are in the electoral fray.