- Tuesday, April 23, 2024
By: Shubham Ghosh
THE Narendra Modi government on Thursday (30) extended a special law that gives the country’s armed forces sweeping powers in the north-eastern state of Nagaland, days after 13 people were killed by the security personnel in what is claimed to be a case of mistaken identity.
The killings triggered protests against the law or the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act of AFSPA which empowers the personnel to carry out raids, conduct searches without warrants and even open fire with much safeguard from prosecution.
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While there has been demand for withdrawal of the law in the north-eastern state that borders Myanmar, the government decided otherwise. It declared the entire state as a “disturbed area” for six months starting Thursday under AFSPA and called the state’s condition “disturbed and dangerous”.
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The government’s decision came days after it set up a high-level body to look into the possibility of withdrawing the controversial law from Nagaland.
“The use of armed forces in aid of the civil power is necessary,” the government said in defence of extending AFSPA.
Earlier in December, the Indian Army gunned down six mine workers while they were returning to their homes in the state’s Mon district near the Myanmar border, believing them to be extremists.
Eight more were killed by the personnel when they were confronted by people who protested the earlier killings. One personnel was also killed and a number of military vehicles were set on fire.
Subsequently, there was a call for the repeal of the law and even the chief minister of Nagaland, Neiphiu Rio, who is an ally of the country’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party, demanded the same.
“India is the biggest democratic country in the world. This is a draconian law. So it should be removed from our country,” Rio told the media after the killings.
On Wednesday (29), the Indian armed forces said in a statement that a court of inquiry which was set up to investigate the case was “proceeding expeditiously”.
