After thousands of supporters dramatically stopped him from going to the Raj Bhavan, Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh on Friday said he is not resigning.
Singh gave the clarification amid speculations that he could submit his resignation today.
"At this crucial juncture, I wish to clarify that I will not be resigning from the post of Chief Minister," said Singh in a tweet.
Earlier today, thousands of supporters gathered outside Singh's residence and stopped him from going to the Raj Bhavan to meet Governor Anusuiya Uikey. A large number of the protesters were women who appealed to Singh to not resign.
"The CM eventually told women demonstrators that he was not resigning from the chief minister’s post...Women leaders who met him defused the situation by coming out of the chief minister's residence and assuring the crowd that Singh was not resigning. The mob slowly dispersed from his residence after this statement," reported PTI.
A photo of a torn resignation letter also surfaced in media reports amid the drama in Imphal. Thousands of supporters blocked Singh's convoy from going to the Raj Bhavan. Videos of supporters asking Singh to not resign have also surfaced.
The PTI reported, "Unconfirmed reports said that the CM had typed out a resignation letter but was persuaded by his supporters to tear it up. Earlier in the afternoon, hundreds of youth wearing black shirts and women sat down in front of the CM’s residence demanding that Biren Singh should not resign."
Earlier in the afternoon, hundreds of youth wearing black shirts and women sat down in front of Singh's house to demand that he should not resign.
Kshetrimayum Shanti, a women leader, told PTI, "At this critical juncture, the Biren Singh government should stand firm and crack down on troublemakers."
Sources told PTI that there were strong rumours in Imphal since morning that Singh was contemplating resigning from his post after renewed violence in the state on Thursday claimed three more lives, leaving five injured in violence on Thursday.
The toll in exchange of fire between security forces and suspected rioters in Kangpokpi district a day before, rose to three on Friday, with one more person succumbing to injuries in hospital, officials told PTI, adding that armed rioters had opened unprovoked firing at Haraothel village on Thursday and the Indian Army said security forces personnel "responded in a calibrated manner" to tackle the situation.
Members of the community to which the deceased belonged then attempted to march to Singh's residence in protest, reported PTI.
"The demonstrators, led by women, even dared police to arrest them, and were also seen burning tyres in the middle of the road to prevent police movement, the officials said. As security personnel stopped them from marching to Singh’s residence, the processionists turned violent, prompting police to use tear gas shells and resort to lathi-charge to disperse the mob," reported PTI.
Manipur has been in the grips of ethnic violence since May 3 when violence erupted between the state's Meitei and tribal communities. Since then, over 100 people have been killed in violence that continues to be reported frequently. The Opposition has blamed Singh for the violence and has called for his resignation.
