Imphal : Manipur Public Works Department Minister Govindas Konthoujam on Wednesday (June 19 ) said that Chief Minister N Biren Singh’s absence from the recent security review meeting in Delhi, chaired by Union Home Minister Amit Shah, was due to the executive nature of the meeting rather than political considerations.

Responding to allegations from the Manipur Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC), Konthoujam emphasised that the meeting focused on administrative and security issues, thus making it inappropriate for the Chief Minister to attend.

The MPCC had earlier claimed that not inviting Singh to the meeting violated Schedule 7 of the Constitution, which outlines the division of powers between the Union and State governments.

Konthoujam further dismissed allegations by All India Congress Committee (AICC) leader Pawan Khera, who had suggested that Singh’s exclusion indicated a lack of confidence in the Chief Minister. Reacting to this, Konthoujam asserted that the alwere baseless and misleading.  

“We need to understand that Manipur has a security advisor appointed by the government of India to oversee the state’s law and order situation. The post of the chairman of the Unified Command is also held by the security advisor, not by Singh. The Delhi meeting was an executive meeting and not a political one, hence Singh was not included,” Konthoujam said.

“There is no such thing as humiliating the people of the state by not inviting the CM to the security review meeting,” he added.