The JD(U) had won six of the 38 constituencies it had contested in the assembly elections held in March this year. Whereas, the Bharatiya Janata Party secured a majority of 32 seats in the 60-member state Assembly.
The JD(U) MLAs who joined the BJP are Kh Joykishan, N Sanate, Md Achab Uddin, former DGP L M Khaute, and Thangjam Arunkumar.
Khaute and Arunkumar had previously sought to contest the assembly polls on BJP tickets but joined the JD(U) after being denied candidature by the saffron party.
Now, JD(U)'s Muhammad Abdul Nasir remains the only MLA from the party in Manipur. Nasir won the Lilong seat this year.
As per the statement issued by the Legislative Assembly Secretariat, the Speaker of the Manipur Legislative Assembly is pleased to accept the merger of five JD(U) MLAs with the BJP under the tenth schedule of the Constitution.
The major political event happened at a time when Kumar and BJP ties have plunged to a new low as the former made an alliance with Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) in Bihar, forming a new government.
Last month, the poll body formally recognised Nitish Kumar-led JD(U) as a "state party" in Manipur. The party has been recogised as the 'state party' in two other states- Bihar (since 2005), and Arunachal Pradesh (since 2019).
Kumar's Janata Dal-United secured more than 10.75% votes in the Manipur Assembly election this year.
Just like Manipur, six of seven JD(U) MLAs joined BJP in Arunachal Pradesh in 2020. And, the remaining MLA, Techi Kaso, joined the saffron party in August this year.
