IT News
Imphal, Feb 24:
A Public Interest Litigation (PIL) has been filed in the High Court of Manipur, challenging the declaration of Disturbed Area under the AFSPA in Manipur. Sanoujam Shyamcharan Singh, 61, filed the petition under Article 226, seeking to withdraw the ‘disturbed area’ status from the entire state.
The petition seeks to quash a notification issued by the Special Secretary (Home), Government of Manipur, on December 8, 2021. The notification declared “Disturbed Area” in the entire area of the State of Manipur, excluding the Imphal Municipal Area under the provisions of the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958.
The matter is moved today before a division bench comprising of Chief Justice and Justice MV Muralidaran.
In the course of the proceeding, after hearing the submission of the counsel for the Petitioner, Mr. Meihoubam Rakesh, the Court issued a notice of motion which was made returnable on March 31, 2022. Accordingly, Ld. Advocate General, Manipur, Mr. N. Kumarjit Singh, Sr. Advocate, accepted notice on behalf of the Respondents.
In the wake of the Oting massacre in Nagaland, Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh claimed that the State Cabinet had asked the Centre to remove the ‘Disturbed Area’ tag from Manipur. However, the status was extended for another year despite their repeated assurance to the public that their government will continuously push the Center to remove the status.
On December 8, a state Home department’s notification stated the Governor of Manipur has given “ex-post facto approval to declare the entire State of Manipur excluding the Imphal Municipal Area as “Disturbed Area” for 1(one) year with retrospective effect from December 1, 2021.”
The notification issued by Special Secretary (Home) Government of Manipur H Gyan Prakash maintained: “that due to violent activities of various extremist/insurgent groups, the entire State of Manipur is in such a disturbed condition that the use of Armed Forces in aid of civil power is necessary.”
The notification stated that the Governor of Manipur is of the opinion that the areas within the State of Manipur be declared as a “Disturbed Area” under the provisions of the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958, as amended from time to time.
The Manipur Human Rights Commission has observed that AFSPA is now an undemocratic and unjust law to be rooted out wholly given India’s largest democracy in the world. Accordingly, the commission had given several grounds for withdrawing “disturbed area” status from Manipur.
