NSF demands complete repeal of AFSPA in Nagaland, condemns Tirap incident
- Apr 05, 2022,
- Updated Apr 05, 2022, 12:29 AM IST
The Naga Students Federation (NSF) has demanded the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA) should be repealed completely from the Naga homeland, while also condemning the armed forces' "high handedness" in Chasa village, Tirap district of Arunachal Pradesh.
The Apex Naga student’s body comdemned the fire incident in Arunachal Pradesh, in which two civilians were "mistakenly" shot at by Army personnel, was criticised, and the guilty were demanded to face strict punishment as well as the complete removal of AFSPA from all Naga-inhabited areas in the Northeast.
In a statement, the apex Naga students' body in Nagaland, Manipur, Assam, and Arunachal Pradesh said it "outrightly rejected the Centre's plan to please certain sections of the Northeast" by repealing the Armed Forces (Special Powers Act, 1958 in some pockets but keeping it in place in the majority of Naga-populated areas in the region.
The federation stated it will launch a series of democratic agitations to press for its goals, but no date for the start of the uprising was given.
With effect from April 1, the number of "disturbed regions" under the purview of the contentious law in Nagaland, Assam, and Manipur has been reduced by the Centre.
The federation stated it will launch a series of democratic agitations to press for its goals, but no date for the start of the uprising was given.
With effect from April 1, the number of "disturbed regions" under the purview of the contentious law in Nagaland, Assam, and Manipur has been reduced by the Centre.
"While areas under 15 police stations in seven districts of Nagaland will benefit from the Centre's policy, a large portion of the Naga homeland in Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, and Nagaland remains classified as 'disturbed areas,'" it stated.
It questioned the criterion used to exempt certain areas of the Northeast from the Act, claiming that "police stations within the Naga homeland, which have nearly impeccable law and order records, have been completely left out."