Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates: In Manipur, All Parties Focus On "Remove AFSPA"

Assembly Elections 2022 LIVE Updates: Uttar Pradesh, Goa, Manipur, Punjab, and Uttarakhand will vote over seven phases starting February 10, with counting of votes scheduled for March 10.

AFSPA-free Manipur. This is the battlefield slogan that every political party in Manipur is using to win support ahead of the assembly elections in the BJP-ruled state this month.

The National People's Party, or NPP, is a key ally of the BJP in the north-east state and it had helped the BJP form government in 2017 by adding its MLAs to reach the majority mark in the 60-seat house.

This time, the NPP under its chief Conrad Sangma will contest at least 40 seats in Manipur. Mr Sangma is also the Chief Minister of Meghalaya, where the NPP has its roots.

"We have been stressing on repealing the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act. That's very important for the people of Manipur, Nagaland and the northeast. So that's one very important agenda that we are stressing on," Mr Sangma told NDTV.