Defections from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Congress seem to have catapulted the Janata Dal(United) into the big league of poll players in Manipur. Many BJP leaders being denied tickets were expected to move to the Meghalaya-headquartered National People’s Party (NPP), a minor partner in the BJP-led government in Manipur.
The BJP had at least three ticket aspirants for each of the 60 Assembly seats in the State. The NPP became a beneficiary of this disgruntlement. But many defectors have preferred to go to the JD(U), a constituent of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government at the Centre.
