Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to visit Manipur in the first week of January to speak at a BJP rally ahead of the forthcoming assembly elections, according to a party senior.

"As canvassing for the important polls has stepped up particularly in the valley regions," Manipur BJP unit vice president N Nimbus Singh said. "BJP national president J P Nadda, who addressed several poll rallies and led a party meeting on Friday, would also visit to the state on December 30."

The BJP, which leads the state's coalition administration, has previously stated that it will run for all 60 seats, 40 in the valley and 20 in the hills, without forming a pre-election alliance. "A meeting of our party leaders will be called to set the date for our honourable Prime Minister's arrival and the venue for his public address," Nimbus said.

Pratima Bhowmik, a Union minister of state, will arrive in Imphal on Monday, while B L Santosh, the BJP's national general secretary (organisation), will visit on Tuesday, according to Nimbus, who added that party tickets will be distributed in three parts.

According to him, the initial round of candidate announcements may include incumbent BJP ministers and MLAs. The BJP now has 26 members in the 60-member House. On the other hand, Pashupati Kumar Paras, the national head of the Rashtriya Lok Janshakti Party and the Union Minister for Food Processing Industries, would arrive in Imphal on Sunday for a three-day visit to plan tactics for the next elections.