Reactions flow in after Tripura repeals armed forces special powers act as insurgency declines
|
AgartalaNew Delhi, May 28 (ANI): Reactions poured in on Thursday after the government of Tripura decided to withdraw the controversial Armed Forces Special Power Act (AFSPA) from the remaining areas of the state. The state will now move the federal interior ministry for its formal withdrawal. The Act was introduced in 40 police station areas of the state in February 1997. Two years ago, the state government withdrew the provisions of the Act from nine areas after no incident of insurgency was reported. The special powers for “disturbed areas” were first used in 1958 to control Naga separatists, and were subsequently extended to most of the north-east. It has also been in force in the disputed region of Kashmir since 1990. Human rights groups blame AFSPA for a host of extra-judicial killings and arbitrary detentions by security forces. A resident, Jayanta Bhattacharya, welcomed the government decision. General Secretary of Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI-M), Sitaram Yechury, also hailed the decision.
