NEW DELHI: The national Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has begun a detailed examination of the controversial Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958, which is in force in some parts of the country, after receiving several complaints against certain harsh provisions of the Act. The Commission, which had played an instrumental role in the repeal of the Terrorist and disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act (TADA), shall study the Armed Forces Act very carefully and make its recommendations known , according to NHRC sources here. Once the ground has been prepared, the Commission is likely to demand a repeal of the Act or suggest amendments to it. The sources said that section 12(d) of the Protection of Human Rights act, 1993, requires the Commission to review the safeguards provided by or present under the Constitution or any law, currently in force for the protection of human rights, and recommend measures for their effective implementation. The sources said that the Commission had taken up the matter after it had received a representation against the Act, when it had visited Nagaland last year. The nongovernmental organization, which had submitted the representation, asserted that the provisions of the Act virtually gave unlimited powers to the personnel of the security forces, to conduct searches, make arrests without warrants, detain and even shoot to kill, on the grounds of committing or even a suspicion of committing an offense. The NHRC has sought the views of the Central government, on the representation received from the Nagaland People’s Human Rights committee. It has also asked the NGOs in the North East region to submit detailed statistics about people arrested under the law, along with the details of cases, where there was a prima facie evidence of atrocities haying been committed by the security forces.
Article extracted from this publication >> October 2, 1996
