The government on Wednesday declared the entire state of Nagaland a "disturbed area" for six months under the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act.
Nagaland has been under the coverage of the AFSPA for almost six decades and it was not withdrawn even after a framework agreement was signed on August 3, 2015, by Naga insurgent group National Socialist Council of Nagaland (Isak Muivah) General Secretary Thiungaleng Muivah and government interlocutor RN Ravi in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The decision to maintain the status quo in Nagaland regarding coverage of AFSPA, a law slammed by many civil society groups as “draconian”, came amidst reports of deteriorating law and order situation there. The AFSPA gives the armed forces sweeping powers to search and arrest, and to open fire if they deem it necessary for “the maintenance of public order”.
