Restive tribes threaten to resume homeland stir

Bijay Sankar Bora

The Supreme Court ruling on the importance of holding the security forces accountable for human rights violations, notwithstanding the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958, has been hailed in the region, especially in the troubled state of Manipur where allegations of fake encounters have been galore.

The `Iron lady’ of Manipur, Irom Sharmila, has been on fast since November 2, 2000, demanding that the AFSPA be repealed. Several human rights activists and social groups in Manipur and Assam are hopeful that the Government of India will now heed to the demand for repealing the Act.

Parts of the North-East and Jammu and Kashmir have been declared “disturbed areas”. The AFSPA is in force here. The Act grants soldiers virtual immunity from prosecution in civil courts.The apex court is hearing a PIL by Imphal-based NGO Human Rights Alert and a victims’ group, seeking its intervention in cases of 1,528 alleged extrajudicial executions in Manipur from 1979 to 2012.

“We welcome the judgment. We shall have to wait on what the court decides on our demand for a special investigation team to probe all such cases,” said Babloo Loitongbam, the NGO’s director.

Several tribal groups in the North East, demanding separate states in the areas they call their homeland, have vowed to step up their movement, if the BJP-led NDA government in New Delhi fails to initiate concrete steps to fulfil their demand by August 15. 

This decision was taken at a meeting of the North East chapter of the National Federation for New States (NFNS) in Guwahati on July 9. The Bodo tribal community in Assam is one of the foremost ethnic groups that has been pressing for a separate state. The president of the All-Bodo Students’ Union (ABSU), Promode Bodo, who attended the meeting, said:  “If no policy is formulated by the Union Government to accept and grant our demand by August 15, we will relaunch the movement.” 

Besides the Bodos in Assam, other ethnic groups from the region demanding separate states include the Karbis, Dimasas, Kukis and Kokborok. Of these Bodos, Karbis and Dimasas are the main tribes of Assam, the Kukis have a stronghold in Manipur  while the Kokboroks are dominant in Tripura.

The ABSU leader pointed out that the NFN, NE chapter, set up before the Lok Sabha elections, had suspended its statehood movement and supported the BJP as the party had vowed to back the creation of  smaller states. 

“The Centre has held only one rounds of talks with us on the demand for a separate state for the Karbi Anglong tribe. We will resume our agitation,” said Khorsing Teron, chairman, Joint Action Committee for Autonomous State (JACAS).