About Armed Forces (Special) Powers Act (AFSPA):
- It is a law enacted by the Parliament in 1958 which gives the armed forces special powers and immunity to maintain public order in “disturbed areas”.
- It can be applied only after an area has been declared “disturbed” under section 2 of the Act.
- Jurisdiction:
- Both the State and Union governments can issue notifications declaring certain areas as “disturbed”, granting the armed forces the authority under AFSPA.
- For Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh, the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) issues periodic notifications.
- Disturbed Areas under AFSPA: Defined under Section 3 of the Act, a “disturbed area” is where the use of armed forces is deemed necessary to support civil authorities in maintaining law and order.
- Declaration of Disturbed Areas:
- An area can be declared disturbed due to conflicts or disputes between various religious, racial, linguistic, regional, or caste-based communities.
- The central government, Governor of the state, or the administrator of the Union Territory can declare the whole or part of a state or union territory as a disturbed area.
- Once declared, the region is maintained as disturbed for at least three months under The Disturbed Areas (Special Courts) Act, 1976.
- The scope and duration of AFSPA can vary depending on the region’s security situation.
- The ‘special powers’ of armed forces under AFSPA are:
- They have the authority to prohibit a gathering of five or more persons in an area, can use force or even open fire after giving due warning if they feel a person is in contravention of the law.
- If reasonable suspicion exists, the army can also arrest a person without a warrant, enter or search a premise without a warrant, and ban the possession of firearms.
- Any person arrested or taken into custody may be handed over to the officer in charge of the nearest police station along with a report detailing the circumstances that led to the arrest.
- These armed forces are immune from prosecution unless the Union Government provides sanction to the prosecuting agencies.
Apart from Nagaland, the AFSPA is currently in force in Jammu and Kashmir, Assam, and Manipur except in Imphal, and Arunachal Pradesh.
