The Hindu : Front Page : Army not for withdrawal of Special Powers Act

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Sep 14, 2004

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Army not for withdrawal of Special Powers Act

By Sandeep Dikshit

NEW DELHI, SEPT. 13. The Chief of the Army Staff, N.C. Vij, today told the Union Home Minister, Shivraj Patil, that counter-insurgency operations in Manipur would be compromised if the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act was further diluted or withdrawn.

In a presentation to Mr. Patil here, Gen. Vij said the withdrawal of the AFSPA from Manipur could give rise to similar demands from other States in the North-East and Jammu and Kashmir. He was articulating the dominant view in the security establishment about the need to have the AFSPA for fighting insurgency. The AFSPA gave wide-ranging powers to the Army and enabled it to remain "aggressive'' in combating militancy.

Reopening talks

The Centre has indicated to the former Manipur Chief Minister, Rishang Keishing, MP that it was not averse to reopening talks with the agitating students. Mr. Keishing called on Mr. Patil today. The meeting took place in the backdrop of Mr. Patil's visit to the State earlier this month when the Apunba Lup, a group of 32 organisations demanding the withdrawal of AFSPA, walked out of a meeting with Mr. Patil. Mr. Keishing told The Hindu that when he conveyed to Mr. Patil the willingness of the Apunba Lup to resume talks in Delhi, "I found that the Home Minister was quite prepared to talk''.

On the other hand, official sources were tight-lipped on Gen. Vij's meeting with Mr. Patil but it is said that Gen. Vij pointed out that withdrawal of the AFSPA from the municipal limits of Imphal had weakened the counter-insurgency drive in the city. Emerging from the presentation, Gen. Vij refused to give details and said that "it was a regular meeting on everything concerning security.''

Sources said that such meetings between the Home Minister and the Army chief took place every month in view of the Army's heavy involvement in internal security duties. The meetings were "omnibus'' in nature though it was admitted that Manipur figured more prominently in today's interaction.

The sources said that the Army officers who made the presentation to Mr. Patil indicated that they were simply forwarding their assessment of the situation and it should not be read as an ultimatum of any sort. At the same time, they recalled that the former Army chief, V.P. Malik, had strongly reacted to the move initiated by a section of the security establishment some time ago to withdraw the AFSPA.

The Assam Rifles — commanded and largely staffed with Army personnel — could not do without the AFSPA in the North-East, he had told the then Cabinet Committee on Security.

The Army's perception would be a crucial input in the Centre's strategy to deal with the unrest in Manipur triggered by the alleged rape and killing of a Manipuri woman, Thangjam Manorama Devi, by men of the 17th Assam Rifles. Mr. Patil today called on the Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh, and briefed him on the situation in Manipur as the first step in this direction.

Both Gen. Vij and Mr. Patil have visited Manipur to get a first-hand account of the situation. Gen. Vij conveyed his impression to Mr. Patil, after interacting with senior officers of Assam Rifles, the largest counter-insurgency force operating in the North-East.

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