The death of several civilians in Nagaland on 4th December following the action of the Armed Forces has brought back into focus the controversial Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958.
Does AFSPA give total immunity to the armed forces? Let's understand this.
AFSPA gives them the authority to use force after giving due warning if they feel a person is in contravention of the law. The Act further provides that if "reasonable suspicion exists", the armed forces can also arrest a person without a warrant.
But does it give them a licence to kill?
Even though the Act gives sweeping powers to security forces, Section 4 of the Act shows that the authority to cause death is contextually limited as such action can be taken only to maintain public order.
In 2016, the Supreme Court clarified that "total immunity" would not be granted to officers against any probe into alleged excesses.
