- The Union Home Ministry has extended the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA) in parts of Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh for another six months.
- The areas under the Act’s purview remain unchanged from the last notification in March.
- The Act grants broad powers to the armed forces and Central Armed Police Forces in “disturbed areas” to maintain law and order.
- It allows forces to kill or arrest anyone acting against the law without facing legal consequences.
- Both the State and Union governments have the power to declare areas as “disturbed” and bring them under AFSPA’s jurisdiction.
- Armed forces personnel have the special powers under AFSPA like authority to:
- Use force, even to the extent of causing death, against any person acting in contravention of the law.
- Arrest individuals without a warrant on the suspicion of committing or intending to commit a cognizable offence.
- Enter and search premises without a warrant to make arrests or recover property.
- Protection from Prosecution: No legal proceedings can be initiated against armed forces personnel for actions taken under AFSPA without the central government’s sanction.
| Disturbed Areas under Section 3 of AFSPA, 1958: Assam: Tinsukia, Dibrugarh, Charaideo and Sivasagar of the State of Assam. Manipur: Hill Districts on Manipur. (19 police station limits in the seven valley districts of Manipur have been removed from the ambit of the ‘disturbed area’) Arunachal Pradesh: Tirap, Changlang and Longding districts in Arunachal Pradesh and the areas falling within the jurisdiction of Namsai, Mahadevpur and Chowkham police stations in Namsai district of Arunachal Pradesh, bordering the State of Assam. Nagaland: Dimapur, Niuland, Chumoukedima, Mon, Kiphire, Noklak, Phek and Peren districts in Nagaland and selected police stations from other districts. |
Dig Deeper: Read about SC judgement on Mon Civilian killings in Nagaland.
