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National People's Party MP Agatha Sangma NPP MP Agatha Sangma on friday demanded the repeal of AFSPA from the North East. She spoke to Sourav Roy Barman about it.
Why did you demand the repeal of AFSPA in Lok Sabha?
The President, in his address, spoke about the efforts being taken to ensure peace in the North East… In that context, I spoke about AFSPA since it is one of the major causes of conflict in the North East. We saw the unfortunate incident of the killings of innocent civilians in Nagaland.
How can peace be restored in the restive areas?
Negotiation and dialogue should be the way forward. Looked at from any human rights perspective, AFSPA is being misused.
What about the argument that security forces deployed in volatile areas need AFSPA cover?
There are Naxal areas in the country as well. But why does AFSPA apply only to J&K and the North East?… I understand the needs of the security personnel but it cannot come at the cost of human rights.
Your party is a part of NDA. Have you raised the demand in other official forums?
Yes, I have. But such forums offer very limited scope of dialogue.
So you believe dialogue should happen?
Yes, certainly. For any such decision to be taken, dialogue has to be initiated.
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