Part of the Manipur Crisis Chronicle. Every claim carries a cited source; contested numbers are shown with their dates, never merged. This installment covers 1–28 February 2025.
The month the elected government of Manipur ended and the state was placed under President's Rule — not by a vote in the assembly, but by a summons to Delhi, a governor's notice, and a constitutional machinery that had been running on fumes since August 2023.[171] February 2025 had two stories running in parallel: the collapse of the Biren Singh government, and a new disarmament theatre that began the month the central government took over.[170]
The Manipur unit of Congress had sounded a no-confidence warning against the BJP-led government.[173] State Congress president Keisham Meghachandra said on Friday February 7 that his party "was set to move the no-confidence motion soon," with the assembly session in Imphal set to start February 10.[173] On X he posted that a "Brahmastra missile will surely hit one of the double engines" — a reference to the BJP's "double-engine" slogan of BJP governments at both state and Centre.[173] Before that, former Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh led a delegation to the Raj Bhavan to apprise Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla of an alleged threat by Biren Singh: at a BJP event in Imphal on January 14, 2025, the Chief Minister had said that any MLA who moves a no-confidence motion "will not be able to stay in the house as he will be chased by the people."[173] Local media reports, the Congress president's own reading, suggested a section of BJP legislators unhappy with the handling of the ethnic conflict "may lend their support to the no-confidence motion," and hinted at a division in the BJP with two sets of MLAs visiting Delhi.[173]
The motion was never moved. [167][167][167][167][167][167] On Sunday February 9 — "a day before he was set to face a no-confidence motion in the Manipur Assembly" — Chief Minister N. [167][167][167][167][167][167] Biren Singh submitted his resignation to Governor Bhalla.[167] Earlier that day he had been summoned to Delhi for a meeting with Home Minister Amit Shah that lasted 15 minutes at Shah's residence, and he was "accompanied by 14 MLAs belonging to the BJP and Naga People's Front (NPF)."[167] Soon after returning to Imphal he tendered his resignation, accompanied by BJP in-charge for Manipur Sambit Patra and BJP state president A. [167][167] [167] Sharda Devi.[167]
In the resignation letter, Singh asked the Centre to "maintain the territorial integrity of Manipur which has a rich and diverse civilizational history over thousands of years; to crack down on border infiltration and to formulate policy for the deportation of the illegal immigrants; to continue the fight against drugs and narco-terrorism; to continue the stringent and fool-proof revised mechanism of FMR (Free Movement Regime) with the biometric being stringently applied."[167] The demands echo the January 2024 Kangla Fort six demands (installment 009) — border fencing, deportation, and FMR — restated now by the resigning Chief Minister himself.[167]
The Governor accepted the resignation "and asked him to continue in office till 'alternative arrangements are made,' the Raj Bhavan said in a statement."[168]
The same day, a notice issued by assembly secretary K. [168] Meghajit Singh declared the 7th session of the 12th Manipur Legislative Assembly — set to commence February 10 — "null and void" with immediate effect, in the Governor's name:[168]
The Congress read this as a constitutional violation.[171] On February 13, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said Article 174 — the requirement that no more than six months intervene between sessions — had been "violated" in Manipur: "The Governor of Manipur had convened the Assembly session to begin on February 10, 2025 and a no-confidence motion submitted by the Congress was to be taken up. The CM resigned the previous night and the session was later declared 'null and void.'"[171] His conclusion: "Six months have now passed. Article 174 has clearly been violated. [171][171][171][171] This is nothing but deliberate contempt of the Constitution."[171] He reminded that "way back on August 1, 2023, the Supreme Court had observed that 'there has been an absolute breakdown of constitutional machinery in the State'" — the finding that, 18 months later, the Centre's own action under Article 356 would formalise.[171]
The Centre imposed President's Rule in Manipur on February 13, after Biren Singh resigned; the state assembly, which has a tenure till 2027, was placed under suspended animation.[170][176][177] The assembly was not dissolved — the constitutional machinery of the state was taken over by the Centre while the House itself was frozen.[170]
The month's institutional reviews followed. [175][169][169][177] On February 28, officials said Home Minister Amit Shah would review the security situation "on Saturday... [175][169][169][177] the first such meeting after the imposition of the President's rule," with Governor Bhalla, top Manipur government officials, Army, and paramilitary forces in attendance.[175] Earlier, on February 16, the police — "in coordination with the Army and paramilitary forces" — had begun cracking down on extremists and armed radicals, with "more than two dozen members of various armed groups" caught so far.[169] One operation in Churachandpur district led to the arrest of seven suspected Kuki National Army members with a cache including AK-47 rifles.[169] On February 21, 11 officials including six police officers were transferred under the new administration — including a swap of the Superintendents of Police of Tamenglong and Chandel districts.[177]
Manipur's ten Kuki-Zo MLAs — of whom seven are from the BJP — welcomed the Centre's decision to place the Assembly under suspended animation.[169][176] In a joint statement on February 16 they said: "While acknowledging the Centre's decision to place the Assembly under suspended animation, we express hope that the Government of India would lay out a comprehensive political roadmap for peace and justice under a negotiated settlement," and asked for "time-bound measures to end the sufferings that the conflict-affected and internally displaced people continue to undergo."[169] The Hindu noted the Kuki-Zo MLAs "fled the Meitei-dominated Imphal Valley after ethnic violence broke out on May 3, 2023, and are continuing to stay away," and that they "proposed a 'separate administration' for the Kuki-Zos, maintaining that it would be difficult for members of their community to co-exist with the Meiteis."[169]
The same article carried a perception-layer datapoint: the Manipur police were investigating "fraudulent calls made to the MLAs apparently 'to influence and mislead' them 'by exploiting the ongoing political situation in the State,'" with an FIR registered at Imphal police station.[169] An information war was running alongside the political one — and the government's own answer came as an appeal, issued February 11, for citizens "to remain calm and not fall prey to unverified news, rumours, or misinformation that could disrupt peace and harmony in the state," backed by a 24x7 verification Control Room.[178]
The month's other arc began February 20, when Governor Bhalla "urged warring groups to voluntarily surrender weapons robbed from security forces and other illegally held arms within seven days, assuring that no punitive action would be taken."[170] On the final day of the seven-day ultimatum — Thursday, February 27 — Arambai Tenggol members surrendered 246 arms at the 1st Manipur Rifles battalion; over the seven-day period "more than 300 weapons were surrendered by the public, primarily in the valley districts."[170] Chief Secretary P.K. Singh had said the forces would take action after the expiry of the period.[170] On February 28, Bhalla extended the deadline to 4 pm on March 6 "following appeals from residents in both hill and valley areas," and his statement called it the final opportunity to surrender without punitive action.[175]
The numbers did not add up, in Kuki-Zo eyes. [170][170][170] The Indigenous Tribal Leaders Forum (ITLF) and the Committee on Tribal Unity (COTU) dismissed the surrender as "a 'mere gesture' and a 'strategic attempt to improve public image.'"[170] In their words, the surrender of "246 looted arms by Arambai Tenggol is merely symbolic, accounting for only 5% of the 6,000 weapons looted from Imphal Valley."[170] They called it "a calculated effort to enhance their public image, particularly in the wake of their meeting with Manipur governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla," and accused Arambai Tenggol of being "responsible for the deaths of more than 230 Kuki-Zo community members" while reiterating the demand for a separate administration.[170]
The chronicle does not merge these numbers. [170][170][170] The 6,000-looted figure is the organisations' claim, dated February 28.[170] The September 2024 recovery figure recalled in the same The Hindu piece was Security Advisor Kuldiep Singh's 2,681 weapons recovered, including 1,200 looted from police armories — a different basis, quoted as recalled.[170] The measure of the drive's completeness was exactly what the two communities disagreed on.[170]
The day the surrender deadline was extended, violence returned. [174][174][174] "Suspected Kuki militants launched a gun attack Friday morning at Kongba Maru Laipham (temple) in Imphal East, just one day after Meitei group Arambai Tenggol surrendered 246 weapons following Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla's appeal to relinquish illegal arms."[174] According to sources cited by India Today NE, militants fired multiple rounds from a hilltop position at about 9:30 am targeting devotees and a priest at the temple; "the religious ceremony continued under security protection provided by state police and CRPF personnel."[174] Local residents appealed to Bhalla to dismantle militant bunkers in nearby hill areas they said posed ongoing threats to lowland communities.[174]
The month closed inside the contradiction: a disarmament drive hailed by one community, dismissed by the other, and an armed attack in the valley on the same day the rules of the drive were relaxed.[170][174]
PTI, 28 Feb) vs "250 people have lost their lives" (India Today NE, 28 Feb) — vs the December 2024 figure of 258 (ITNE). [170][175] Three readings, three dates, none merged.[170][175]
(≈5% by their arithmetic); 300+ surrendered publicly in seven days; Kuldiep Singh's September 2024 recovery tally 2,681 (incl. [170] 1,200 from police armories), as recalled.[170]
"more than 230."[170]
dissolved.[170][173]
the feasibility of holding recruitment exams in Churachandpur — thread connecting to the October 2024 kidnapping of two youths bound for an SSC GD test (installment 018); SSC had told the Manipur government of the Constable (GD) Examination scheduled February 4–25, 2025.[172]
Cluster scan (kuki-zo-mlas, Hindu vs ITNE): The Hindu's register carries "ethnic violence" (2 uses) and names the separate-administration demand; ITNE uses the vaguer "conflict" (3 uses) and a summary of the demand. Both outlets quote the same joint statement; neither editorialises on President's Rule. The difference is labelling, not lean — the regional outlet hedges where the national paper specifies the ethnic character of the violence.
Cluster scan (at-surrender, Hindu/PTI vs ITNE): The Hindu piece is a claim and counter-claim report built on the ITLF-COTU statement, their numbers and attributions carried in full; ITNE's attack report is event-descriptive with zero framing terms in the body, the labels sitting in headlines ("suspected Kuki militants"). The surrender-as-theatre framing entered the record through the organisations' own statement, picked up verbatim by a national wire — the first draft of that reading was set by the Kuki-Zo groups themselves.
Provenance notes: the President's-Rule date of February 13 comes from four outlets (The Hindu/PTI, The Hindu Bureau, ITNE, ITNE wire) with no contradiction — the rare clean consensus in this chronicle. The Jairam Ramesh and Ibobi Singh statements are attributed party-spokesman claims, presented as such. No corrections or retractions were found against any February 2025 article in this run.