Yumnam Khemchand Singh elected as BJP's Legislative party leader, to be next Manipur Chief Minister

New Delhi: Manipur is all set to get its next Chief Minister after a year-long vacuum following Biren Singh's resignation and the imposition of the President's rule amid the ethnic violence. This comes as Singh was elected as the Manipur BP's Legislative party leader on Tuesday.

A group of BJP MLAs landed in Delhi and held wide-ranging talks with the party's central leadership, including Amit Shah, on the government formation in Manipur. Singh was then elected as the leader by the MLAs.

https://twitter.com/ANI/status/2018673243276652731?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E2018673243276652731%7Ctwgr%5Ec267afd9605a1336b189e820a1a0949ffc0f8329%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.indiatvnews.com%2Fnorth-east%2Fmanipur%2Fyumnam-khemchand-elected-as-bjp-s-legislative-party-leader-to-be-next-manipur-chief-minister-2026-02-03-1028761

Responding to the decision, BJP MLA Thokchom Radheshyam Singh said, "It's good that we are going to have an elected government, a popular government. It's long overdue. So we thank the central leadership for finally taking this step." 

"Every problem has a solution. I think with the guidance of the central leadership and the new ministry, under the leadership of Yumnam Khemchand, we will find a solution," he added.

Who is Yumnam Khemachand Singh

Yumnam Khemchand Singh is a senior politician from the BJP and a prominent leader in Manipur’s political landscape. He has been elected to the Manipur Legislative Assembly from the Singjamei constituency in Imphal West in both the 2017 and 2022 assembly elections.

He served as the Speaker of the Manipur Legislative Assembly from March 2017 to March 2022, overseeing legislative proceedings and managing assembly affairs during a critical period in the state’s politics.

After the saffron secured a majority in the 2022 Assembly Elections, Singh was appointed as a cabinet minister in the second term of the Biren Singh government. In this role, he held the portfolios of Municipal Administration, Housing Development (MAHUD), Rural Development and Panchayati Raj, and Education until February 2025, when President’s Rule was imposed in Manipur

Beyond politics, Khemchand Singh has a longstanding personal interest in martial arts. In December 2025, he became the first Indian to be awarded a fifth-dan black belt in traditional taekwondo by the Global Traditional Taekwondo Federation in Seoul, recognising his decades of dedication to the discipline since he began training at age 16.