Ministry Of Home Affairs has declared these areas as ‘disturbed area’ under Section 3 of the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958 for a period of six months.
- Currently, AFSPA is in effect in parts of Nagaland, Assam, Manipur, and Arunachal Pradesh.
- AFSPA is in force in Jammu and Kashmir(J&K) through Armed Forces (J&K) Special Powers Act, 1990.
About AFSPA:
- Objective: Conferring certain special powers upon members of the armed forces in disturbed areas in North eastern States.
- Section 3 of Act: Governor of State or Administrator of Union territory or Central Government may declare whole/such part of such State/UT to be a disturbed area.
- Disturbed area is an area where use of armed forces in aid of civil power is necessary.
- Section 4 of Act: Gives special powers to armed forces although they must be exercised with extreme caution.
- After giving due warning, it can fire upon/use force against any person acting in contravention of laws,
- If reasonable suspicion exists, can also arrest a person without a warrant;
- Unless otherwise authorized by the central government, Army soldiers operating under AFSPA are shielded from all legal actions.
Issues with AFSPA
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