The Supreme Court of India has ruled that army and paramilitary forces cannot use excessive and retaliatory force during counter-insurgency operations in disturbed areas declared disturbed under the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA), 1958.
The verdict tears down the cloak of secrecy about unaccounted deaths involving security forces in disturbed areas and serves as a judicial precedent to uphold civilian and human rights in sensitive areas under military control.
The judgment came on a plea by hundreds of families in the north-eastern State of Manipur, the SC decided to order a probe into 1,528 cases of alleged fake encounters in Manipur in the last 20 years. It also rejected the central government’s submission that there is a war-like situation in the state and an inquiry may demoralise the security forces, in turn helping the militants, terrorists, and insurgents.
The court dismissed the government’s argument that every armed person breaking prohibitory orders in a disturbed area runs the risk of being considered an “enemy.”
A thorough enquiry has been ordered into “encounter” killings in disturbed areas because the “alleged enemy is a citizen of our country entitled to all fundamental rights including under Article 21 of the Constitution.”
“This is the requirement of a democracy and the requirement of preservation of the rule of law and the preservation of individual liberties. It does not matter whether the victim was a common person or a militant or a terrorist, nor does it matter whether the aggressor was a common person or the State. The law is the same for both and is equally applicable to both,” the court ruled.
The bench said as is evident from the dos and don’ts and the ten commandments of the chief of army staff, the army believes in this ethos and accepts that this principle would apply even in an area under AFSPA and against militants, insurgents, and terrorists.
The court posted the matter for further hearing.
