New Delhi: After facing unceasing public heat in Nagaland over the December 4 killing of 13 unarmed civilians by the special forces of the Army in Mon district, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has decided to form a five-member committee to look into withdrawal of the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act from the northeastern state.
Nagaland has the country’s oldest insurgency which is yet to be resolved politically. AFSPA has been clamped on the Naga hills since the 1950s.
Making that announcement on December 26 in a statement, the Nagaland government said the decision to institute the committee was taken at a meeting chaired by the Union home minister Amit Shah on December 23. Those who attended the meeting in New Delhi were state chief minister Neiphu Rio, state home minister Y. Patton, former state chief minister T.R. Zeliang and Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma in the capacity of the convener of the North East Democratic Alliance (NEDA) of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
The joint statement signed by Rio, also the head of the National Democratic Progressive Party (NDPP), Patton from the BJP and Zeliang, the leader of the Naga People’s Front (NPF), said, “The committee will submit its report within 45 days and (the) withdrawal of the Disturbed Area and AFSPA from Nagaland will be based on the recommendations of the committee.” While the additional secretary (North East) in the MHA will chair the committee, its members include the Nagaland chief secretary and the director general of police, aside from including a representative of the CRPF and another member form the office of the Inspector General of Assam Rifles (North).
New Delhi-based news reports quoting MHA officials, however, state that the five-member committee will be chaired by the Registrar General and Census Commissioner while the additional secretary at the MHA will be its member secretary. While making no mention of the ‘representative’ of the CRPF, the reports said it would include the Nagaland chief secretary and the DGP, besides the DGP of Assam Rifles.
Also read: AFSPA Killed the Naga Coal Miners in Mon
On December 6, Shah, expressing regret at the killings in Parliament, had called the incident, carried out by the 21 Para forces of the Army, a case of ‘mistaken identity’, and added, “Based on inputs received by the Indian Army about movement of the insurgents near Tiru village in Tizit area of Mon district, a team of 21 para-commandos of Indian Army laid an ambush in the evening of 04.12.2021. During the ambush, a vehicle approached the location and it was signaled to stop. However, the vehicle tried to flee, following which the vehicle, suspected of carrying insurgents, was fired upon resulting in killing of 6 out of 8 persons travelling in the vehicle.”
Shah’s statement was termed ‘a lie’ by the people of the district, including local leaders from the BJP – leading to burning of his effigy in a public rally and a growing demand to withdraw AFSPA from the border state. The unrelenting public anger across the state pushed the Nagaland government to hold a special session of the assembly last week to pass a resolution to request the Union to withdraw the draconian law from Nagaland.
The law grants unparalleled rights to the Army to conduct anti-insurgent operations in areas declared a ‘disturbed area’, including the right to barge into any premise at any time and arrest anyone without a prior warrant. The army is also granted immunity from any killing carried out on the ground. Though the army is required to coordinate with the local police to avoid causing any harm to innocent civilians during such operations, the Mon action on December 4 evening failed to do so, prodding the state government to file an FIR against the Army on that count.
Following the public outrage and demand for the state and central governments to deliver justice on the matter, the state government also constituted a special investigative team (SIT) to look into the incident and submit a report within a month.
While the Army also announced a court of inquiry, the December 26 statement of the Nagaland government spelt out the details, “A court of inquiry will initiate disciplinary proceedings against the army unit and army personnel, who are directly involved in the Oting incident and action will be taken immediately on the basis of a fair enquiry. The identified persons who will face the enquiry will be placed under suspension with immediate effect.”
The state government also promised to “provide government jobs to the next of kin of the deceased”.
Also read: AFSPA, the Law That Allows Incidents Like the Nagaland Killings to Occur
“To initiate this process, the Deputy Commissioner and the Superintendent of Police of Mon district, will carry out necessary procedures in consultation with the concerned village councils and government jobs will be given on compassionate grounds on the basis of eligibility.” The joint statement also said that the delegation to New Delhi “impressed upon the MHA to replace the Assam Rifles unit in Mon with immediate effect”. This is based on the demand of the local public as firing by the Assam Rifles unit on December 5 (to disperse an angry mob) had also led to death and injuries. Among those dead included the Mon district BJP Tribal Morcha president.
The Nagaland government’s statement also urged “all sections to remain calm”. In a clear move to quell outrage at Shah’s statement in Parliament (the Centre’s decision to stand with the Army had led the state BJP unit to lie low and avoid attending the funeral services of the victims and offer condolence message to their families), the joint statement also said, “The democratic and peaceful nature of the civil society groups, tribal hohos and mass based organisations in our collective quest for justice and truth has been well received and has created a positive image of the Naga people to the rest of the global community.”