Watch | 'Feel Patronised, Huge Trust Deficit Between Delhi and Region': Patricia Mukhim

In a tragic outcome, 13 villagers from the Mon district in Nagaland were killed after an army operation to reportedly track down insurgents saw gunfire open at the villagers. Two of the survivors told the Indian Express, “We were not signalled to stop. They killed us directly. We were not trying to flee…we were just in the vehicle.”

This witness account sits at odds with statements made by the Union Home Minister Amit Shah, where he said the vehicle “was signalled to stop” and was fired upon after it “tried to flee".

The incident has touched a throbbing nerve on a larger issue – AFSPA or the controversial Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958. The Nagaland cabinet has decided to ask the government of India to repeal the act and the call has found wide support among organisations and politicians, both within and beyond Nagaland.

Mitali Mukherjee spoke with Patricia Mukhim, Editor of the Shillong Times, on the wave of anger and shock across the region and the renewed demand to repeal AFSPA.

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