Manipur Chief Ministers Timeline: Tenures Since 1963
Every Manipur Chief Minister since 1963 with party, dates and President's rule spells: Koireng Singh to Ibobi Singh, Biren Singh and Khemchand Singh.
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Manipur has had a Chief Minister since 1963, when it was a Union Territory with a Territorial Council, and became a full state on 21 January 1972. Since then governments have changed often and President’s rule has been imposed many times. Wikipedia’s list counts fourteen holders of the post, while the compiled table we used names thirteen people, so one entry may be counted differently; this page lists the terms in that table, which we have not cross-checked with a primary source, and flags dates where sources differ.
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Mairembam Koireng Singh was Manipur’s first Chief Minister, in 1963. Okram Ibobi Singh of Congress held the post longest, from 7 March 2002 to 14 March 2017. N. Biren Singh of the BJP served from 15 March 2017 until he resigned on 9 February 2025, after which President’s rule ran from 13 February 2025 to 4 February 2026, when Yumnam Khemchand Singh of the BJP took office.
Manipur’s Chief Ministers in Five Points
- First CM: Mairembam Koireng Singh (Congress), who held the post three times between 1963 and 1969.
- Longest-serving: Okram Ibobi Singh, Congress, from 7 March 2002 to 14 March 2017.
- Only BJP CMs: N. Biren Singh (2017 to 2025) and Yumnam Khemchand Singh (since 2026).
- Latest President’s rule: 13 February 2025 to 4 February 2026, after Biren Singh’s resignation.
- Many short spells: several CMs held office for months, and the 1990s and 2001 saw repeated President’s rule.
Chief Ministers of Manipur
In order of taking office, from a compiled table last updated 3 September 2026; dates differ by a day or more across sources in places.
| Chief Minister | Party | Period | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mairembam Koireng Singh | INC | 1 Jul 1963 to 11 Jan 1967 | First CM; returned for two more spells in 1967 and 1968-69 |
| Mairembam Koireng Singh | INC | 20 Mar 1967 to 4 Oct 1967 | Second spell |
| Longjam Thambou Singh | Manipur United Front | 4 Oct 1967 to 24 Oct 1967 | Start date varies by source (some say 13 Oct) |
| Mairembam Koireng Singh | INC | 19 Feb 1968 to 16 Oct 1969 | Third spell, then President’s rule |
| Mohammed Alimuddin | MPP | 23 Mar 1972 to 27 Mar 1973 | First CM after statehood (21 Jan 1972) |
| Mohammed Alimuddin | MPP | 4 Mar 1974 to 9 Jul 1974 | Second spell |
| Yangmaso Shaiza | Manipur Hills Union | 9 Jul 1974 to 5 Dec 1974 | Hill-based leader |
| Rajkumar Dorendra Singh | INC | 5 Dec 1974 to 15 May 1977 | First of three spells |
| Yangmaso Shaiza | Janata Party | 29 Jun 1977 to 13 Nov 1979 | Second spell |
| Rajkumar Dorendra Singh | INC | 14 Jan 1980 to 26 Nov 1980 | Second spell |
| Rishang Keishing | INC | 27 Nov 1980 to 27 Feb 1981 | First of three spells |
| Rishang Keishing | INC | 19 Jun 1981 to 3 Mar 1988 | Second spell, nearly seven years |
| Rajkumar Jaichandra Singh | INC | 4 Mar 1988 to 22 Feb 1990 | |
| Rajkumar Ranbir Singh | MPP | 23 Feb 1990 to 6 Jan 1992 | |
| Rajkumar Dorendra Singh | INC | 8 Apr 1992 to 31 Dec 1993 | Third spell |
| Rishang Keishing | INC | 14 Dec 1994 to 15 Dec 1997 | Third spell |
| Wahengbam Nipamacha Singh | Manipur State Congress Party | 16 Dec 1997 to 14 Feb 2001 | |
| Radhabinod Koijam | Samata Party | 15 Feb 2001 to 1 Jun 2001 | Followed by President’s rule |
| Okram Ibobi Singh | INC | 7 Mar 2002 to 14 Mar 2017 | Longest-serving CM, about 15 years |
| N. Biren Singh | BJP | 15 Mar 2017 to 13 Feb 2025 | Resigned 9 Feb 2025; President’s rule from 13 Feb |
| Yumnam Khemchand Singh | BJP | 4 Feb 2026 to present | Sworn in as President’s rule ended |
President’s rule was imposed between several of these terms: 12 January to 19 March 1967, 25 October 1967 to 18 February 1968, 17 October 1969 to 22 March 1972 (across statehood), 28 March 1973 to 3 March 1974, 16 May to 28 June 1977, 14 November 1979 to 13 January 1980, 28 February to June 1981, 7 January to 7 April 1992, 31 December 1993 to 13 December 1994, 2 June 2001 to 6 March 2002, and 13 February 2025 to 4 February 2026.
Dates to treat with care
The compiled table gives Biren Singh’s end date as 13 February 2025 while noting that he resigned on 9 February. It also puts Ibobi Singh’s tenure at about 15 years, and Wikipedia calls him the longest holder of the post at 15 years and 11 days; we have not reconciled the two. The 1981 President’s rule end date is given only as June.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Sources
Reporting and data used in this story.
- Wikipedia: List of chief ministers of Manipur
- Anantamias: Manipur Chief Ministers list (updated 3 Sep 2026; secondary compilation)
- Wikipedia: 12th Manipur Assembly
Update History
- November 8, 2026: first version.