Now that the Justice BP Jeevan Reddy Committee has very rightly recommended for "repealing" (withdrawing or rescinding) of the AFSPA - the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act 1958 from its operation in the North-east region, particularly in the State of Manipur saying that "the Act is too bald and quite inadequate in several particulars" and that the Act, for whatever reason, has become "a symbol of oppression, an object of hate and instrument of discrimination and high handedness".

The recommendation however notes that while it is highly desirable and advisable to repeal the Act altogether, without of course, losing sight of overwhelming desire of an overwhelming majority of the Army deployed in the north-east region for the Act to remain as it is, the Army should continue to be deployed in the region as stand-bye forces for assisting the local civil administration in maintaining the law and order in their States as and when required immediately by them when their local police forces become alarmingly inadequate and unable to deal effectively with the situation.

The role of the Army and their para-military forces so required to be called up "in aid of civil power", though it may be particularly for dealing with "terrorism" and "insurgency" is purely to be of normal "policing duties" i.e. very much within the parameters of the civil laws and not in the role of performing military duties of engaging an "external enemy" in a war under Marshal Law.

The committee also pointed out that "protection from legal proceedings against Army personnel acting in good faith and in the true discharge of their duties in fighting out terrorism and insurgency the same does already exist in Section 49 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 and hence need not to be worried or scared of going out of the AFSPA only for that purpose.

The so called Armed Forces (Assam and Manipur) Special Powers Act 1958 had been enacted to enable certain special powers to be conferred upon members of the Armed Forces in disturbed areas" in the State of Assam and erstwhile Union Territory of Manipur and the powers to declare the areas as disturbed areas have been given in the Governments of the State and the Union Territory and not on the Central Government who of course is the final authority of the enactment of the withdrawal or repealing or amending of the Act after duly processed in both the Parliaments and duly "assented" by the President of India which is a process that cannot be expected to be carried out "at a soot", and also a process to be taken up by the Central Govt only after the State Government initiates for it.

However, the immediate suspension of its operation, if needed, in the larger public interest, can be or has to be done by the State Governments by withdrawing the declaration of their areas as disturbed areas as had been done by the Manipur Government partially in 7 Constituencies of its urban areas of Imphal city recently which may be revoked again by them as and when required to do so.

The provision that makes the Act as a "draconian Law" as strongly and most hatefully felt by the majority of the people of the north-east, particularly by the people of Manipur, arising out of the most fearful results that have been there due to uncalled -for extreme "excesses" in the operational actions of the Army and their para-military forces, namely the Assam Rifles, in particular under the cover of the Act, is the provisions contained in Section 4(a) of the Act, which empowers "any commissioned officer, warrant officer, non-commissioned officer or any other person of equivalent rank in the Armed Forces, operating in a disturbed area if he is of opinion that it is necessary so to do for the maintenance of public order after giving such warning as he may consider necessary fire upon or otherwise use force, even to the causing of death", against any person who is acting in contravention of any law or order for the time being in force in the disturbed area prohibiting the assembly of five or more persons or the carrying of weapon or things capable of being used as weapons or of fire-arms, ammunition or explosive substances.

Also provisions contained in Section 6 of the Act make the Armed Forces personnel more high-handed since no legal proceedings can be taken up against them for their evidently excessive actions carried out without the previous sanction of the Central Government who always have the very "partial tendencies" of caring or covering more of the culprits of their Armed Forces rather than allowing the law to take its own course for bringing "justice" in the interest of the people, though they are always "loud with the slogan of the maxim - the Government by the people, of the People and for the People", as if the people of the north-east region are not that People meant in the Maxim.

In the light of clear mandatory provisions so given in the Act as enumerated above the actions of the columns of the Assam Rifles that they had carried out in the years 2000 on November 2 at Malom, near Imphal city and in 2004 on 11/12 June at Bamon Kampu of the Imphal East district where some 10 civilians including innocent girls "were massacred" while they were standing peacefully, and not in the form of a~ unlawful assembly, simply waiting for a bus in the Bus waiting shed by the "indiscriminate firing" in 'amok' of a column of the Assam Rifles, and more worst on their part, one girl, named Thangjam Manorama Devi of Bamon Kampu was mercilessly and most inhumanly shot death through "her private part" by another column of the Assam Rifles (the 17th Bn then stationed at Kangla) after she had been forcibly picked up after severely tortured in the presence of her mother and other members of the family and had been carried away from her house alone in the late night on the charge that she was actively engaged in the unlawful activities as an insurgent, and the killing of the ill-fated girl was strongly suspected to have been carried out after she had been "raped" - she was shot dead through her private part, perhaps, to cover up or destroy the physical marks of evidences of the heinous crime committed - do not at all conform to all the provisions of the Act laid down to justify their most excessive acts - in fact, no where in the Act there is provision authorising the personnel of the Army operating in a disturbed area to cause death and that also after carrying out the acts of molesting and raping of 18 female suspects as the column of the 17th Assam Rifles had allegedly carried out.

From the above cited two glaring cases it is crystal clear that the column of the Assam Rifles acted very high-handedly, carelessly and most inhumanly in utter violations of the provisions contained in the AFSPA Act, 1958 as their actions so carried out do not at all conform as had been said above, to the conditions strictly laid down in the Act, such as of giving "due warning" etc. before they opened their firing against the unarmed, innocent and peaceful civilians including girl i.e. their indiscriminate firing cannot be taken as fully "justified acts" on their part as actions that could be justified when they are at liberty to do so during an exchange of firing with en "armed gang", and their firing so carried out in "amok" did not at all have any relevance with the maintenance of public order for the very purpose of which they have been given the power of free hand.

In fact, the provisions contained in Section 4(a) of the AFSPA, 1958, if one may very carefully and deeply examines it, is the special power given to the Armed Forces officers and men for their dealing with a "violent mob" of a unlawful assembly who becomes most dangerously, violent with dangerous weapons and arms when they are deputed to deal with such a situation in a disturbed area.

For, a situation during an armed encounter with an armed gang of insurgents or terrorists there does not arise at all of their giving before hand warning" for opening up of their firing. In such situations their firing actions have to be taken as "spontaneous and automatic" actions on their part of the exchange of firing of the armed encounter with the armed gang. Still worst part of their high-hande-dness that had been clear-ly exhibited under the cover of the AFSPA had been in the case of deceased Thangjam Mano-rama Devi, as though the AR column is very much authorised as a part of its normal policing duties under the Act.

Under section 4(c)(d) to arrest her for a suspected 'cognizable criminal offence' but as required strictly under the mandatory provisions under section 5 of the Act they should have handed her over to the nearest Police station with least possible delay and necessary further police investigations to be taken thereafter - they did not do that, instead they carried her to isolated places under the plea of her leading to the discovery of hide-outs of the insurgents - this they should have safely done accompanied by two or three civil police personnel particularly women police constables, and it was in that quite suitably isolated situation that, perhaps, she had been helplessly molested and even raped and shot dead as strongly suspected as indicated from the visible circumstances and from physical and scientific physical evidences found in the "inquest" done by the police on the spot at the first point of time where she was found lying dead (the cause of her death also appeared to the police to be killing after the crime of rape had been carried out) - even her interrogation could not be carried out by the column of the Assam Rifles alone but only to have been carried out, by the "joint interrogation cell" that have been legally set up and located then in the premises of the Kangla fort consisting of all concerned, on her production before the cell by the police station concerned under the custody of whom she ought to have been kept under arrest in connection with the alleged criminal case registered against her under an FIR (first information report).

Really speaking, the AFSPA itself is not that "draconian" in its very spirits of operation but it is the Armed personnel of the Army columns, quite unknowingly or intentionally, who acted themselves as the "DRACO", the Athenian statesman and ruler after whom (in 621 BC) the rigorous law of punishing with death even for a trivial offence came into existence among the Athenians. The Assam Rifles columns had acted really very high handedly and in "amok" against the innocent and helpless civilian people with a "couldn't care attitude for the local people" and with no effective "command and control" exercised by their higher ups who should actually be held responsible for such uncalled for highly criminal miss-deeds of their subordinates - such wild and not properly controlled actions perpetrated time and again by the lower ranks do certainly reflect very bad impressions and image on the performance of the higher-ups to the eye of the general public thereby losing their "good faith" on the entire force.

It is indeed a very sad thing to find that the Army columns in Manipur, in the valley area in particular unlike what they were once some 2/3 decades before have time and again added "fuel to the burning fire" instead of assisting the local administration to lessen their headache in maintaining "peace in the state" for the very purpose of which they are deployed "in aid of civil power" heavily draining on the exchequer of the Government.

The greatest headache on the statement Government now is "facing" the situation that has latestly and most unwantedly developed after the people came to know of the recommendation of the justice BP Jeevan Reddy Committee for repealing of the AFSPA which, if not done soon, the life of Irom Chanu Sharmilla who had been under a marathon fasting unto death campaign for the last almost 6 years breaking all the existing records in that regard of the world, even that of Gandhiji, the father of the Indian Nation, and the champion and originator of "satyagraha in the form of fasting unto death" is very much at high stake of coming to the end of her virgin life for the sake of the "repealing of the AFSPA" and who has now shifted.... her venue of unprecedented "self-immolation campaign" for the cause of her countrymen, particularly of the people of the north-east from Imphal to Delhi thereby the most serious and delicate matter being exposed more openly and wisely to the eyes and years of the people of the whole world.

The mighty British under the Premiership of Winston Churchill succumbed helplessly to the pressure of the fasting unto death campaign of Gandhiji carried out in the year 1945 for the fully determined demand of independence of India as they feared of developing a world wide highly "condemnable" issue if Gandhiji happened to end his life.

Therefore, both the State Government and the Central Government stand today on a cross-road of great "dilemma" as to what exactly has to be done now in this regard, whether to repeal the Act as has been strongly recommended to do so by the Jeevan Reddy committee, or just close their eyes and lead a complete deaf ear and allow or cause Sharmilla, come what may, to end her precious life, which if allowed to happen at all will certainly bring most disastrous results - the entire valley area of the state to be in another unprecedented greatest "turmoil" and in most "vigorously burning situation" sponsored by the thousands of highly aggrieved and irritated female groups, the dauntless Meira Paibis.

The headache of the State Government has become more acute now as the entire burden of the issue has been put on them by the Centre saying that it is they who should take the initiative of solving the issue i.e. it is upto them to take the first the action or step of withdrawal of the declaration of their state as the disturbed area after which the operation of the AFSPA in the state will automatically remain suspended and if the State Government could manage by itself in maintaining the law and order by itself by its largely available state armed police forces and the central reserve police force at their disposal then the actions of repealing the AFSPA to follow in full swing.

It is, by now a very clear fact known to every "Tom, Dick and Harry" that Sharmila's fully determined "self-immolation campaign" by the process of her fasting unto death cannot be prevented at all unless and until the AFSPA is repealed from its operation at least in Manipur, particularly in the valley area, and therefore it is expected by all that the State Government do not further delay in issuing the necessary orders for the withdrawal of the same at least from the entire valley area of the state, of course, taking a high risk in the matters of suppressing the insurgency and terrorism activities of the valley-based insurgents and terrorists who may step up their unlawful activities taking the advantage of Army being out of their role of fighting against them.

In this regard, it has been very rightly pointed out that the law has been in force in the state since its inception in 1958 but the number of insurgent outfits has multiplied even though the number of security forces, both the local armed police forces including the CRPF and of the units of the Army and their para-military forces have colossally been increased, defeating its very purpose to control militancy and violence i.e. the role of the Army in the isolated "hit and run" activities of the revolutionaries and the terrorists did not make much difference in so far the situation of the valley is concerned except that more "knotty problems had been created by their excessive actions perpetrated on the innocent civilians as have been highlighted above.

While the Army and its para-military Forces may continue to look after the hill areas, where actually the situation is comparatively quite calm by now, the local armed forces, the Manipur Rifles Battalions, the India Reserve Battalions, the CRPF etc should be able to take care of the situation in the valley area as they are presently doing quite actively and satisfactorily in producing their results as a part of their statutory duties of maintaining peace in the state, who may be made to be more active by streamline their organisations and by revitalising and reactivating them by giving intensive anti-insurgency training and refresher courses etc - after all the Manipur Rifles Bns had been equipped with much better arms and other equipment at par with BSF Bns, unlike any of the state armed police Bn in the country, such as of the heavy weapons of 3 inch mortars, Medium Machine guns (vicker) etc. which are heavy weapons of much longer and more effective fire-arms not issued even to the units of the Assam Rifles and the CRPF units as the Central Government of India wanted the Manipur Rifles Bns to be fully capable of fighting insurgency in the state of their own - only what may be lacking now is to reactivate them by giving the necessary intensive training and other courses for which the require facilities and the infrastructures, particularly, for imparting "guerilla-fighting training in the jungle and hilly terrain" are readily available at their than training centre and in its surrounding hilly areas at Pangei, and of course most importantly, to motivate them to be really "duty-oriented force" by tightening up the "command and control" of the senior commanders so that there may not be any "suspicion" or "disbelief" on them being of a "useless lot" and sympathisers of the local revolutionaries - against whom they should be rather effective as per proverbs - "kant keno kanta beirtako - " a thorn is extracted out only by another thorn" and "Lohe lohe se ka taft - "Iron cuts iron".

There are nearly 20 Bns of the Manipur Rifles Bns, the IRS Bns and the CRPF Bns in addition to the very good number of armed civil police and Home guards for the maintenance of law and order in Manipur - the gigantic strength of armed force so available is the strength of some 6 Army Brigades and 2 Divisions, as one Army Brigade consists of 3 armed Battalions and a Division of 9 Battalions, and therefore, as has been said earlier, they (the local armed police forces) should be capable of handling the situation, at least of the valley area, by properly organising and utilising them, otherwise one cannot but wonder as to the "real utility" of having such a big strength of local police armed force which have so rapidly been multiplied from what it was minimally earlier with quite handsome pay and other perks and facilities, and also a good amount of pension and its allowances and benefits to be enjoyed even after their retirement from active and sacrificed service as the "life time rewards fer the same" from the Government. The attractiveness of their pay and other monetary benefits, particularly of the higher echelons, the SsP, the Commandants and above will further increase soon with the coming of the 6th Pay Commission report.

Even with all such very good amenities, facilities and other protections available unlike of the previous times, if they still fail to produce the desired results of their "statutory" duties then one is bound to highly 'speculate' as to the real 'utility' of their very existence draining so heavily on the State's exchequer i.e their very existence becomes really 'meaningless' and not fully 'justified'.