Revision as of 00:45, 11 September 2018

Armed Forces Special Powers Act: Some facts; Graphic courtesy: The Times of India, Jan 15 2016

Area of applicability

2017: `disturbed area' in Meghalaya and Arunachal Pradesh reduced

Naresh Mitra, AFSPA zone reduced in 2 NE states, October 3, 2017: The Times of India

 The Union home ministry has brought down the range of `disturbed area' under the controversial Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA) 1958 in Meghalaya and Arunachal Pradesh following improvement in the law and order situation.

A notification issued by the ministry on Sunday said areas under the `disturbed area' tag in Meghalaya along the border with Assam has been reduced to 10 km from the previous 20 km under Section 3 of AFSPA up to March 31, 2018. The notification came into effect from Sunday.

On August 4 this year, the ministry declared the areas falling within the 20 km wide belt in Meghalaya on the Assam border as `disturbed area'. In Arunachal, the notification said areas under the jurisdiction of 11 police stations in eight districts bordering Assam have been declared to be “disturbed area“ up to March 31, 2018.

AFSPA removed from Meghalaya, restricted in AP

April 23, 2018: The Times of India

Insurgency in the north-east India, 2000-17;
AFSPA withdrawl- Meghalya, Arunachal Pradesh. Whole of Assam and Nagaland as well as entire Manipur
From: Bharti Jain, April 24, 2018: The Times of India

HIGHLIGHTS

AFSPA was totally withdrawn from all areas of Meghalaya from April 1

In Arunachal, it is down from 16 police stations to eight

The Act was withdrawn from Tripura in 2015

The Union Home Ministry has removed Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA) from Meghalaya and reduced it to eight police stations in Arunachal Pradesh, an official said.

"AFSPA was totally withdrawn from all areas of Meghalaya from April 1. In Arunachal, it is down from 16 police stations to eight," the official said.

The Act has however been extended by another six months in three eastern districts of Arunachal Pradesh -- Tirap, Longding and Changlang -- which border Myanmar and specific areas under eight police stations of seven other districts bordering Assam. The three districts have been under the AFSPA since January 2016.

The Act was withdrawn from Tripura in 2015 and in past one year, fewer areas in northeast are under the Act, the official said, adding that the Act was only in place in Meghalaya for a 20-km area along the Assam border and not in operation in Mizoram.

In Assam, 63 NDFB(S) cadres killed and 1052 cadres/linkmen were arrested between December 2014 and March 2018.

Compared to 2016 there has been a 37 percent fall in insurgency incidents in NE region; 30 percent reduction in forces killed; and 23 percent fall in civilians killed.

Between 2014 and 2018, there has been a 63 percent decline in insurgency incidents in NE; 83% fall in civilian deaths; and 40 percent fall in security personnel killings.

Between peak of insurgency in 1997 and 2017, insurgency incidents in NE region has come down by 85 percent and fatal casualties among civilian and security forces have come down by 96 percent, the Home Ministry said.

AFSPA gives powers to the Army and central forces deployed in "disturbed areas" to kill anyone acting in contravention of law, arrest and search any premises without a warrant and provide cover to forces from prosecution and legal suits without the Central government's sanction.

It is effective in the whole of Nagaland, Assam, Manipur (excluding seven Assembly constituencies of Imphal). The state governments of Assam and Manipur now have the powers to keep or revoke the Act.

‘Dilution’ of AFSPA, ordered by SC

Reported reaction among Army personnel

Dhananjay Mahapatra, 300 Armymen may move SC against AFSPA ‘dilution’, August 14, 2018: The Times of India

In an unprecedented step, more than 300 Army men deployed in disturbed areas of the country are likely to move the Supreme Court on Tuesday, protesting against the apex court’s direction to the CBI to register FIRs against some armed forces personnel for allegedly being involved in old encounter cases in Manipur, which they allege took away the ‘AFSPA shield’ that protected them for action during anti-insurgency operations.

A bench, headed by Justice Madan Lokur, had recently slammed the CBI director for delay in filing of FIRs against Manipur police commandos and armed forces personnel who were allegedly involved in what a PIL alleged as ‘extra-judicial killings’ during operations in the last two decades. The SC had asked the CBI director as to why it had not arrested the accused despite the allegations of killings. The CBI director had told the court that after the agency filed its chargesheets, it was for the trial court concerned to decide whether to grant the accused bail or send them to judicial custody.

However, the armed forces personnel, who under Armed Forces Special Power Act (AFSPA) enjoy virtual immunity from prosecution by police for alleged ‘excesses’ committed during operational exigencies, felt that anti-insurgency operations were vital to protect national integrity and that while doing so, they do not know when there would be a lethal burst of fire that could jeopardise their own lives.

The petition, likely to be filed on Tuesday and mentioned for early hearing by advocate Aishwarya Bhati before CJI Dipak Misra, says the AFSPA immunity was vital for the soldiers to undertake operations against insurgents, who are armed with sophisticated weapons and slip into neighbouring countries to frustrate hot pursuit.

The Manipur Police too is planning to move a petition before the SC to question the efficacy of the SC’s decision to ask the CBI to register FIRs against police commandos who too faced FIRs similar to the armed forces personnel for alleged extra-judicial killings.

Manipur and the AFSPA

SC: Is AFSPA in Manipur eternal?

The Times of India, Jan 15 2016

Dhananjay Mahapatra

SC: Is AFSPA in Manipur eternal?

The Supreme Court asked the Manipur government how long the Army should be deployed in the state and allowed to enjoy unaccountable power under the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA). The court had appointed a high-level panel headed by an ex-judge of the SC to inquire into allegations that the armed forces had carried out over 1,500 extra-judicial killings in the last over 30 years, and that police were refusing to file FIRs because of AFSPA.

AFSPA was imposed in Manipur on September 8, 1980 to tackle lawlessness created by four main insurgent groups. Petitions by NGO Extra-judicial Execution Victims Families Association of Manipur -filed through Babloo Loitongbam -and former director of Manipur health services, Th Suresh Singh, had sought the withdrawal of AFSPA.

After getting the report and hearing the petitions, a bench of Justices Madan B Lokur and U U Lalit told the state government, “ AFSPA was supposed to be a temporary measure. But it has been there for the last 35 years. Two generations have grown up under the presence of Army .“

Appearing for the Congress-led state government, senior advocate V Giri said AFSPA was still needed to maintain law and order.When AFSPA was imposed, there were four prominent insurgent groups; now, there are more than a dozen, he added. The bench said, “You mean to say that in 35 years of Army presence in the state, the situation has not improved to remove the disturbed area tag from the state? Has nothing changed on the law and order front for the last three decades?“

See also

Irom Chanu Sharmila