Yumnam Khemchand Singh of the Bharatiya Janata Party is the Chief Minister of Manipur. He was sworn in on 4 February 2026, the same day President’s Rule in the state was revoked after almost a year. He is the thirteenth person to hold the office since it was created in 1963.
Manipur’s list is the hardest in the country to get right, and the reason is President’s Rule. The state has been under it eleven separate times — more than any other state in India — so the chain of Chief Ministers keeps breaking. Thirteen individuals have occupied the chair across twenty-one separate spells in office. Every one of those breaks is marked as its own row below.
How the Office Works in Manipur
The constitutional position is the ordinary one. Article 164 says the Chief Minister is appointed by the Governor and the rest of the ministers are appointed on the Chief Minister’s advice. In practice the Governor invites whoever can command a majority in the Manipur Legislative Assembly, a single-chamber house of 60 members seated at Imphal. The Council of Ministers is collectively responsible to the assembly, the term runs five years with the life of the house, and there is no cap on how many terms one person may serve.
What has made Manipur different is how often that arrangement has collapsed. Under Article 356, when a state government cannot be carried on in accordance with the Constitution, the President may take over the administration through the Governor. The ministry stands dissolved, the Chief Minister’s office lies vacant, and the assembly is either dissolved or kept in suspended animation. Manipur has been through this eleven times since 1963, for a combined total of more than seven years.
The office also predates statehood. Manipur merged with India on 15 October 1949, was administered as a Part C State and then as a Union Territory, and got its first Chief Minister on 1 July 1963 under the Government of Union Territories Act, 1963. Full statehood came on 21 January 1972 through the North-Eastern Areas (Reorganisation) Act, 1971, the same day Meghalaya and Tripura became states. So the list starts in 1963 and marks the statehood point. One older claim sometimes shows up in lists: Maharaj Kumar Priyabrata Singh headed a short-lived elected ministry under the Manipur State Constitution Act before the 1949 merger. That government sat outside the Indian constitutional framework, and standard listings, including the one below, begin at 1963.
Complete List of Chief Ministers of Manipur
Each row is one continuous spell in office. Where a Chief Minister was re-elected and formed a fresh government without a break, the spell is shown once. President’s Rule rows are marked in bold and carry no name.
| # | Name | Term Start | Term End | Party | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mairembam Koireng Singh | 1 July 1963 | 11 January 1967 | Indian National Congress | First Chief Minister; Union Territory era |
| — | President’s Rule | 12 January 1967 | 19 March 1967 | — | Office vacant |
| 2 | Mairembam Koireng Singh | 20 March 1967 | 4 October 1967 | Indian National Congress | Second spell |
| 3 | Longjam Thambou Singh | 4 October 1967 | 24 October 1967 | Manipur United Front | Shortest tenure; start date disputed |
| — | President’s Rule | 25 October 1967 | 18 February 1968 | — | Office vacant |
| 4 | Mairembam Koireng Singh | 19 February 1968 | 16 October 1969 | Indian National Congress | Third spell |
| — | President’s Rule | 17 October 1969 | 22 March 1972 | — | Longest spell; ran across statehood |
| — | Statehood granted, 21 January 1972 | Manipur becomes a full state | |||
| 5 | Mohammed Alimuddin | 23 March 1972 | 27 March 1973 | Manipur People’s Party | First Chief Minister of the state |
| — | President’s Rule | 28 March 1973 | 3 March 1974 | — | Office vacant |
| 6 | Mohammed Alimuddin | 4 March 1974 | 9 July 1974 | Manipur People’s Party | Second spell |
| 7 | Yangmaso Shaiza | 9 July 1974 | 5 December 1974 | Manipur Hills Union | First Chief Minister from the hill districts |
| 8 | Rajkumar Dorendra Singh | 5 December 1974 | 15 May 1977 | Indian National Congress | First spell |
| — | President’s Rule | 16 May 1977 | 28 June 1977 | — | Office vacant |
| 9 | Yangmaso Shaiza | 29 June 1977 | 13 November 1979 | Janata Party | Second spell, under a different party |
| — | President’s Rule | 14 November 1979 | 13 January 1980 | — | Office vacant |
| 10 | Rajkumar Dorendra Singh | 14 January 1980 | 26 November 1980 | Indian National Congress | Second spell |
| 11 | Rishang Keishing | 27 November 1980 | 27 February 1981 | Indian National Congress | First spell |
| — | President’s Rule | 28 February 1981 | June 1981 | — | End date given variously as 18 or 28 June |
| 12 | Rishang Keishing | 19 June 1981 | 3 March 1988 | Indian National Congress | Longest unbroken Congress run of the era |
| 13 | Rajkumar Jaichandra Singh | 4 March 1988 | 22 February 1990 | Indian National Congress | |
| 14 | Rajkumar Ranbir Singh | 23 February 1990 | 6 January 1992 | Manipur People’s Party | |
| — | President’s Rule | 7 January 1992 | 7 April 1992 | — | Office vacant |
| 15 | Rajkumar Dorendra Singh | 8 April 1992 | 31 December 1993 | Indian National Congress | Third spell |
| — | President’s Rule | 31 December 1993 | 13 December 1994 | — | Office vacant |
| 16 | Rishang Keishing | 14 December 1994 | 15 December 1997 | Indian National Congress | Third spell |
| 17 | Wahengbam Nipamacha Singh | 16 December 1997 | 14 February 2001 | Manipur State Congress Party | |
| 18 | Radhabinod Koijam | 15 February 2001 | 1 June 2001 | Samata Party | |
| — | President’s Rule | 2 June 2001 | 6 March 2002 | — | Office vacant |
| 19 | Okram Ibobi Singh | 7 March 2002 | 14 March 2017 | Indian National Congress | Longest-serving; three consecutive terms |
| 20 | N. Biren Singh | 15 March 2017 | 13 February 2025 | Bharatiya Janata Party | Resigned 9 February 2025 |
| — | President’s Rule | 13 February 2025 | 4 February 2026 | — | Assembly kept in suspended animation |
| 21 | Yumnam Khemchand Singh | 4 February 2026 | Incumbent | Bharatiya Janata Party | Sworn in the day President’s Rule was revoked |
The pattern is stark. Between 1963 and 2002, Manipur averaged a change of government roughly every two years, and no Chief Minister completed a full five-year term. Then came a fifteen-year run of stability under Okram Ibobi Singh, followed by eight under N. Biren Singh. The 2025-26 spell of President’s Rule, imposed after Biren Singh resigned amid the ethnic violence that began in May 2023, ended on 4 February 2026 when the twelfth assembly — whose own term runs to 2027 — was brought out of suspended animation and a new government took office.
Longest-Serving and Most Notable Chief Ministers
Okram Ibobi Singh is the longest-serving Chief Minister of Manipur, with 15 years and 11 days in one unbroken run from 7 March 2002 to 14 March 2017 — three consecutive assembly terms, an unusual thing in a state that had never previously kept a government for five straight years. Rishang Keishing is second by total time, with about nine years and eleven months across three spells, and his 1981-88 run of six years and 258 days was the longest continuous tenure before Ibobi Singh. N. Biren Singh is third, with seven years and 335 days from March 2017 to February 2025.
Mairembam Koireng Singh was the first Chief Minister, taking office on 1 July 1963 when Manipur was a Union Territory. Mohammed Alimuddin was the first Chief Minister of Manipur as a full state, from 23 March 1972. No woman has held the office.
Four tenures repay attention. Koireng Singh’s, because he ran the territory’s first elected executive and was in and out of office three times as the assembly’s arithmetic shifted. Yangmaso Shaiza’s, because he was the first Chief Minister from the hill districts, and his two spells came under two different parties. Rishang Keishing’s, because he was among the longest-serving legislators in the country and held the Congress together through the most fractured stretch of the state’s politics. And Okram Ibobi Singh’s, because his fifteen years converted Manipur from a state defined by government collapse into one with an ordinary electoral cycle — a change that lasted until 2025.
How Power Has Shifted: Party Trends in Manipur
The Congress has dominated the office in raw numbers, but Manipur’s real story is the strength of local and regional formations. Between 1972 and 2002, governments were routinely built out of small parties and defections, which is exactly why President’s Rule kept following them.
| Party | Chief Ministers | Approximate Time in Office |
|---|---|---|
| Indian National Congress | 5 (Koireng, Dorendra, Keishing, Jaichandra, Ibobi) | About 32 years |
| Bharatiya Janata Party | 2 (Biren Singh, Khemchand Singh) | Since March 2017, minus the 2025-26 break |
| Manipur People’s Party | 2 (Alimuddin, Ranbir Singh) | About 3 years |
| Manipur State Congress Party | 1 (Nipamacha Singh) | 3 years 60 days |
| Manipur Hills Union / Janata Party | 1 (Yangmaso Shaiza) | About 2 years 10 months |
| Samata Party | 1 (Radhabinod Koijam) | 106 days |
| Manipur United Front | 1 (Longjam Thambou Singh) | Under a month |
The realignment worth noting is 2017. The Congress had won the most seats in that year’s election but the Bharatiya Janata Party assembled a coalition with the Naga People’s Front, the National People’s Party and others, and N. Biren Singh — himself a former Congress minister who had crossed over in 2016 — became the state’s first Bharatiya Janata Party Chief Minister. The party consolidated in 2022 and, after the 2025-26 interruption, returned to office under a new leader in the same assembly.
Records and Quick Facts
- Total individuals who have served: 13
- Total separate spells in office: 21 (23 ministries if each government formed after a fresh election is counted separately)
- First Chief Minister: Mairembam Koireng Singh, from 1 July 1963 (Union Territory)
- First Chief Minister after statehood: Mohammed Alimuddin, from 23 March 1972
- Longest-serving: Okram Ibobi Singh, 15 years and 11 days, unbroken
- Shortest tenure: Longjam Thambou Singh in October 1967 — sources give it as either 11 or 20 days, depending on whether his term is dated from 4 or 13 October
- Most spells by one person: Mairembam Koireng Singh, Rajkumar Dorendra Singh and Rishang Keishing, three each
- President’s Rule spells: 11, the highest for any Indian state, totalling more than seven years
- Longest President’s Rule: 17 October 1969 to 22 March 1972, which straddled the grant of statehood
- Most recent President’s Rule: 13 February 2025 to 4 February 2026
- Women Chief Ministers: none so far
- Assembly strength: 60 seats, single chamber, seat of government at Imphal
Two source conflicts are worth flagging rather than glossing over. The October 1967 changeover is recorded inconsistently — some listings show Longjam Thambou Singh taking office on 4 October and others on 13 October, which changes his tenure from twenty days to eleven. And the 1981 President’s Rule spell is given an end date of either 18 or 28 June, while Rishang Keishing’s second spell is dated from 19 June, so the two overlap in some tables. The dates above follow the more widely reproduced version, but the disagreement is real.
FAQ
Who is the current Chief Minister of Manipur? Yumnam Khemchand Singh of the Bharatiya Janata Party, sworn in on 4 February 2026. President’s Rule, which had been in force since 13 February 2025, was revoked the same day, and the twelfth assembly was brought out of suspended animation.
Who was the first Chief Minister of Manipur? Mairembam Koireng Singh of the Congress, from 1 July 1963, when Manipur was a Union Territory. Mohammed Alimuddin was the first Chief Minister after statehood on 21 January 1972.
Who has been the longest-serving Chief Minister of Manipur? Okram Ibobi Singh, with 15 years and 11 days in a single unbroken stretch from March 2002 to March 2017.
How many Chief Ministers has Manipur had? Thirteen individuals since 1963, across twenty-one separate spells in office. The gap between the two figures exists because several Chief Ministers returned after President’s Rule or a change of coalition.
How many times has President’s Rule been imposed in Manipur? Eleven times since 1963, more than in any other state, for a combined total of over seven years. The most recent spell ran from 13 February 2025 to 4 February 2026.
Practice Questions
Practice MCQs
- Who was the first Chief Minister of Manipur? (a) Mohammed Alimuddin (b) Mairembam Koireng Singh (c) Yangmaso Shaiza (d) Rishang Keishing Answer: (b) Mairembam Koireng Singh took office on 1 July 1963, when Manipur was still a Union Territory.
- Manipur became a full-fledged state of India on which date? (a) 15 October 1949 (b) 1 July 1963 (c) 21 January 1972 (d) 20 February 1987 Answer: (c) Statehood came on 21 January 1972 under the North-Eastern Areas (Reorganisation) Act, 1971, alongside Meghalaya and Tripura.
- Which Chief Minister of Manipur served the longest single unbroken tenure? (a) Rishang Keishing (b) N. Biren Singh (c) Okram Ibobi Singh (d) Rajkumar Dorendra Singh Answer: (c) Okram Ibobi Singh held office for 15 years and 11 days, from March 2002 to March 2017.
- How many spells of President’s Rule has Manipur seen since 1963? (a) Six (b) Eight (c) Eleven (d) Fourteen Answer: (c) Eleven spells, the highest number for any Indian state, totalling more than seven years.
- President’s Rule imposed in Manipur in February 2025 was revoked on which date? (a) 13 February 2025 (b) 4 February 2026 (c) 15 March 2026 (d) 21 January 2026 Answer: (b) It was revoked on 4 February 2026, the day Yumnam Khemchand Singh was sworn in as Chief Minister.
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