New Delhi/ Arunachal: The Indian government has reportedly decided to continue with Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) in 12 districts of north-eastern state Arunachal Pradesh. The government has taken a plea of continuous violence to label the concerned areas of the state as ‘disturbed areas’.
In a gazette notification issued by Home Ministry, Tirpat, Changlang and Longding districts are areas falling under 16 police stations in nine districts bordering Assam are declared as “disturbed area” under Section 3 of AFSPA for six months beyond May 4, 2016.
The Armed Forces Special Powers Act, also called AFSPA, provides special powers to Indian armed forces in areas labeled as “disturbed areas”. The Human Rights bodies criticise this law as a major source of human rights abuses and impunity.