AIDSO demands withdrawal of AFSPA in Lakhimpur

A CORRESPONDENT

LAKHIMPUR: The All India Democratic Students' Organization (AIDSO) has demanded the government at the Centre to withdraw the controversial AFSPA (Armed Forces Special Powers Act) from the north-eastern region immediately. The central committee of the organization has also severely condemned the alleged brutal killing of civilians in Nagaland by army on December 5.

In this context, expressing deep shock and resentment, the all India general secretary of AIDSO, Sourav Ghosh, in a press statement said, "The gruesome incident of the killing of 15 coal miners in Mon district of Nagaland, while they were returning home from the mine, in indiscriminate firing by the Indian armed forces and again the subsequent killing of the civilians while they were protesting against this senseless and inhuman homicide, proves that in the economically backward north-eastern States of India undeclared military rule is very much in force. In the name of suppressing the insurgency movement that grew up in the post-independence period in demand of a sovereign, independent Nagaland, the Indian armed forces inflicted heinous, barbaric attacks, including rape and murder of the innocent civilians of Nagaland time and again as a result of which deep annoyance has created among the people of Nagaland and even today they could not mentally identify themselves with the mainstream."

He further said, "Black acts like AFSPA - that was enacted by the erstwhile Congress government - have been clamped in the north-eastern States for years together in the name of suppressing insurgency but in reality they've been used to snatch away all democratic rights of the people. Innumerable crimes have been committed by the abuse of such black Acts in the north-eastern States, including Assam, Manipur and Nagaland."

Further, the organization, through the press statement, has demanded the government to immediately withdraw the coercive AFSPA, to immediately institute a judicial enquiry into the Nagaland incident and award stringent punishment to the culprits and to give Rs.50 lakh and Rs. 10 lakh as compensation to the next of kin of the dead and the injured respectively.

The organization has also expressed solidarity with the agitating students of Nagaland who have organized democratic movements against the incident and urged upon all to build up democratic movements throughout the country to compel the Central government to withdraw this coercive AFSPA.

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