The Union Home Ministry cites ongoing law and order issues amid ethnic tensions and security concerns in the Northeast.
New Delhi: The Union Home Ministry on Sunday extended the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA), 1958, for another six months in select areas of Manipur, Nagaland, and Arunachal Pradesh, citing the prevailing law and order situation.
In Manipur, AFSPA has been extended across the state, excluding 13 police station jurisdictions in Imphal West, Imphal East, Thoubal, Bishnupur, and Kakching districts. The decision follows a review of security conditions amid ongoing ethnic tensions between Meitei and Kuki-Zo communities, which have claimed over 260 lives since May 2023. Manipur has been under President’s Rule since February 13, following the resignation of Chief Minister N. Biren Singh.
In Nagaland, the Act has been extended to eight districts — Dimapur, Niuland, Chumoukedima, Mon, Kiphire, Noklak, Phek, and Peren — and to specific police station areas in the Kohima, Mokokchung, Longleng, Wokha, and Zunheboto districts.
Similarly, in Arunachal Pradesh, AFSPA has been extended in Tirap, Changlang, and Longding districts, as well as three police station areas — Namsai, Mahadevpur, and Chowkham — in the Namsai district, which borders Assam.
AFSPA grants armed forces sweeping powers in areas declared "disturbed," including authority to search, arrest, and use force, with legal immunity unless sanctioned by the Central government. The law has long faced criticism as draconian, with calls for its repeal intensifying in the Northeast and Jammu and Kashmir.
Activist Irom Chanu Sharmila famously protested against the Act with a 16-year hunger strike, which she ended in 2016. Union home minister Amit Shah has previously stated that AFSPA has been withdrawn from 70 per cent of the Northeast and indicated that its applicability in Jammu and Kashmir is also under review.
The current extension of AFSPA will be effective from April 1, 2025, unless revoked earlier.
