Government reduces number of places under AFSPA in the northeast (NE)
Recently, the Central Government has decided to reduce the number of ‘disturbed areas’ declared under AFSPA in several districts of the Northeast.
The Ministry of Home Affairs has decided that the number of disturbed areas under the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA), 1958 will be reduced in Nagaland, Assam and Manipur from April 1.
This law was first implemented in the year 1958 to deal with the Naga insurgency.
Earlier, AFSPA was completely removed from Meghalaya in 2018, Tripura in 2015 and Mizoram in the 1980s.
AFSPA is currently in effect in parts of Nagaland, Assam, Manipur and Arunachal Pradesh.
Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA), 1958
- AFSPA gives special powers to the armed forces to maintain law and order in disturbed areas.
- AFSPA gives the armed forces and the Central Armed Police Forces deployed in “disturbed areas” unbridled powers to kill anyone violating the law and to search any premises without a warrant, and with protection from prosecution and legal proceedings.
- Under Section – 3 of the AFSPA Act, 1958 an area is declared as a disturbed area.
- It is declared when a State/Union Territory or any part thereof is in such a situation that the use of armed forces becomes necessary to assist the civil administration.
- The Act was amended in the year 1972 and the powers to declare an area as “disturbed” were conferred on the states as well as the central government.
- An area is declared as a ‘disturbed area’ by the Governor of the State / Administrator of the Union Territory or the Central Government.
- Under Section – 4 of the AFSPA Act, the armed forces can shoot or arrest any person acting against law and order in a disturbed area after giving a warning.
- Section – 6 of this act provides legal immunity to the persons acting under this law.
Source – PIB
