Not a morsel of food for 14 years : Not a question of its legality
- The Sangai Express Editorial :: Ocotber 31, 2014 -
Sharmila being escorted to the Court by the police at Delhi :: Pix - TSE
Not a question of whether it is legal or not.
Far from it, it is more about whether a Government, the Government of India in this case, is justified in imposing an Act that literally gives a license to its armed forces to open fire, even on suspicion, to the extent of causing death.
In a nutshell this is the Armed Forces Special Powers Act and to be sure there have been numerous protests against this Act, which quite a large number of people have dubbed as draconian.
Irom Sharmila Chanu is the face of the crusade against this Act and she has been at it for 14 years now, well a day or two lesser than 14 years.
After Assam Rifles personnel mowed down ten or so civilians in the infamous Malom massacre in 2010, the lady in question has been on a fast since November 2 the same year demanding that the Army Act be withdrawn from the State.
Not a morsel of food nor a drop of water has passed through her gullet since then, thereby giving a whole new meaning to the understanding of fasting to pursue a demand.
The Malom incident was not the first nor was it the last, but it is more than true that after Sharmila began her fast, the Armed Forces Special Powers Act was pitchforked into the international arena.
From a country which gave birth to the peace crusader and champion of non-violence, India today stands dangerously close to the tag of a country which endorses State sponsored killing and massacre.
The continued imposition of the said Act in Manipur for decades should underline the point that is sought to be conveyed here.
Not that Manipur has not seen any spontaneous uprising or protest against the continued imposition of the Army Act.
It was not for nothing that former Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh had to fly down here to address the people after the State erupted as one after Thangjam Manorama was brutalised and murdered by Assam Rifles personnel in the summer of 2004.
The Justice Jeevan Reddy Committee was constituted to look into the Act and not surprisingly the Committee recommended the repeal of the said Act.
That the Government has preferred to sleep over the matter is testified by the fact that Sharmila continues with her fast today.
There is as yet no sign or even a hint that the Centre is seriously looking into the possibility of lifting the Act from Manipur, but let it be clear that the crusade against the Armed Forces Special Powers Act will continue.
It should be more than clear that Sharmila has not given the slightest hint of giving up her crusade.
An Act to help protect the sovereignty of the country sounds like a poor excuse to carry on with the Armed Forces Special Powers Act.
There is nothing to suggest that the said Act has in any way helped in reining in the activities of the underground outfits.
Far from it, the number of armed groups has only increased after the Act was imposed in the State. Time for Delhi to go in for a rethink and study why it should need such an Act to keep the integrity of the Nation intact.
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