New Delhi, November 23 (Agencies): The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government at the centre has made it clear that the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958 (AFSPA) will not be repealed any time soon, further straining the party’s relations with the Naga People’s Front (NPF), its ally of 13 years in Nagaland. The opposition, citing alleged extra-judicial killings in Manipur, has been saying the Northeast is on the brink of a humanitarian crisis because of AFSPA. Senior Congress leader Ambika Soni had sought a response from the home ministry on the insurgent situation in the region and on whether the Army was reviewing it. In July, the Supreme Court also said indefinite deployment of armed forces in the region was a mockery of the democratic process. However, the government has made it clear that AFSPA will not be repealed any time soon. The centre in June declared all of Nagaland a “disturbed area”. The centre has declared disturbed the “whole state of Nagaland,” Satyendra Garg, joint secretary, northeast division in the ministry of home affairs, said in an order in June. Ignoring the regional political tension, however, Rijiju remained resolute and insisted that all measures were being taken to prevent any misuse of AFSPA by security forces. He also said punitive measures were likely to be taken against the forces in case of violation of human rights or safety of women and children. “AFSPA is reviewed periodically and an objective assessment of the ground situation is made in consultation with security agencies and the concerned state governments. Specific instructions have been issued to the armed forces operating in ‘disturbed area’, violation of which make them liable for prosecution under the Army Act and Central Armed Police Forces Acts,” Rijiju added.
