New Delhi: Union home Minister P Chidambaram on Thursday conceded that despite his best efforts a consensus is still eluding within the government to amend the controversial Armed Forces Special (Powers) Act (AFSPA).
Provisions of AFSPA are often criticised by the human and civil rights groups and have also attracted international gaze from institutions like Amnesty International for being draconian in nature and virtually giving unlimited powers to Armed forces against citizens in areas where the act is in force.
Whenever there has been a move for repealing or diluting the AFSPA, the Army has put its foot down, warning that it would have no option but to move out from areas if such a decision is taken.
Currently, the AFSPA is in force in entire Jammu and Kashmir and insurgency-hit north-eastern states of Assam, Manipur and Nagaland, in Tirap and Changlang districts of Arunachal Pradesh, in a 20-km belt in Meghalaya that borders Assam and in 22 police stations of Tripura.
Irom Sharmila’s valiant battle (she is on fast for past 10 years in Manipur) against the AFSPA has time and again forced the government to go in for a rethink but after much deliberations, it was removed only from the municipal areas of capital Imphal.
“I am trying to revisit AFSPA but as you know one needs to build a consensus within the government before amendments can be brought before Parliament. But we are trying. You know we have tried in the past also,” Chidambaram said after presenting the monthly report of Ministry of Home Affairs here on Thursday.
For repealing AFSPA in J&K, Chidambaram virtually put the onus on chief minister Omar Abdullah.
“At operational level, the state would have to have the unified command to review the application of Disturbed Areas Act. If they are able to lift the Disturbed Areas Act then AFSPA won’t be applicable in the state. So that is something that they have to do. I am in touch with the chief minister and he has to weigh the pros and cons and then decide when to do it,” Chidambaram said.
However, critics say the argument is eyewash and the powers to dilute the provisions of AFSPA in J&K are vested with the Centre through the Governor. “If the governor takes back his executive order of February 92, the AFSPA provision would be toned down to a great extent. The order forbids the police stations from filing FIRs against the Armed forces even if the commit any excesses and the police can act only if sanction is procured from the government headquarters,” said Engineer Rashid,MLA from Langet in Kashmir.