AFSPA imposed in new areas of Manipur amid fresh violence

Imphal/New Delhi:

The Center has reimposed a law to protect security forces in hostile areas in several new localities in ethnic violence-hit Manipur. The Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act was reimposed in six police stations, including Jiribam, where 10 suspected Kuki militants were shot dead in a clash with security forces on Monday, and from where three women and three children from the Meitei community were taken away. kidnapped by suspected insurgents.

The AFSPA gives extensive powers to the army to operate freely wherever it has been declared a “disturbed zone”; no soldier present in an area where the AFSPA is in force can be prosecuted without the authorization of the Center.

Before this, 19 police station areas in Manipur were not covered under AFSPA as they were considered peaceful. The recent escalation in violence, however, has brought back the controversial law to at least six police station areas.

The six areas where security forces can operate under the immunity granted by AFSPA in Manipur are Sekmai and Lamsang in Imphal West district, Lamlai in Imphal East district, Jiribam in Jiribam district, Leimakhong in Kangpokpi and Moirang in Bishnupur.

AFSPA was withdrawn from 19 police station areas in the valley region after returning to normalcy. The Meitei-Kuki ethnic violence which broke out in May 2023, however, led many young people to take up arms. The Meitei insurgent groups, which were only active in Myanmar after being driven out of India, are believed to have returned to the Valley in large numbers.

The Kuki-Zo tribes also have nearly 24 insurgent groups that have signed a ceasefire with the Center and the state government, called the Suspension of Operations (SoO) agreement. The agreement stipulates that insurgents must stay in designated camps and that their weapons are kept in locked warehouses and monitored regularly.

However, Kuki-Zo insurgent groups have also been accused of training youth and supplying weapons to fight Meitei groups, including the Arambai Tenggol armed group.

The Meitei and Kuki armed groups which emerged after May 2023 call themselves “village defense volunteers”.