Social Justice and Democracy in the Northeast India
Khansemphi KK Raleng
Since the colonial era, specific legal frameworks were introduced in the Northeast region to protect
the rights of the people. These continued even after independence. But the people have been deprived of their basic rights especially when it comes to Armed Force Special Power Act (AFSPA)
1958. Over the years, there have been debates on several critical issues that the people in the Northeast region encounter. The recent Citizen Amendment Bill, 2016 which raises serious questions on
issues pertaining to migrant population in the region, has ignored the basic problems that people
have been facing over decades. This makes us believe that despite Indian democracy, access to social justice in the region remains a critical issue.
Although many laws have been in practice in the Northeast region, this article primarily revolves
around two legislations-one which have been implemented for about six decades, and another being
the one which is passed in Lok Sabha recently. These are the AFSPA, 1958 and Citizenship
Amendment Bill, 2016 respectively. The former is one of the draconian legislation in the Constitution of India which was made to fight against terrorism and riots. But it seems like the government
and army use it to discriminate the civilians, use the Act as a tool to take away the rights to live and
liberty of North-east citizens. The only way to restore justice to people is either to withdraw the Act
or amend it in a way that curbs discrimination. On the other hand, the Citizenship Amendment Bill,
2016 which is expected to change the socio-demographic profile of the region and is likely to affect
the whole scenario of indigenous peoples in various spheres which is against the Constitution of the
country. Since the illegal migrants from the neighbouring country is huge in the Northeast states,
this bill may impose a great deal of threat to the people of the frontier, and also may do injustice to
the people of North-east region of India.
The AFSPA grants special powers to the Indian Armed Forces in the so called ‘disturbed areas’. It
was passed on 11th, September 1958 and applied to the Northeast states, was also applied to Jammu
and Kashmir in 1990. The British started the Armed Forces Special Powers Ordinance of 1942 in
order to suppress the Quit India Movement. After that, it was used at different states to deal with the
internal security of the country during the partition. In 2015, the Tripura State government withdrew
the Act as there was a significant decrease in the activities of the insurgency, and in 2018, the Act
was also withdrawn from the state of Meghalaya (Singh, 2018).
One of the most affected states from the Northeast region by this Act is Manipur, resulting in serious social unrest. Singh and Khuraijam (2013) provides an argument as how the Act has failed to
perform its purposes. The Act was imposed in the state of Manipur in 1960s in the Hill and 1980s in
the Valley. Since then, the people of both Hill and Valley in Manipur continue to face human rights
violations and protest against the Act. For examples, Chittaranjan’s self-immolation, mother’s nude
agitation, economic blockage, general strike, Sharmila’s decade of hunger strike, arrest of many
human rights defenders social activists are some of the reflections. The rights have been violated in
many ways, physical torture being the major one. There have been incidents of civilian killings,
massacres, extrajudicial executions, rape and other sexual abuses, tortures, human shields, arsons,
plunders, forced labours, internal displacements and so on. All these took place in the name of
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countering insurgency. As per a rough estimates, one military person was deployed for 16 people in
Manipur.
Since the Mizoram Peace Accord in 1986, the state has become peaceful and the problem of Insurgency came to an end. But there was no attempt to remove the Act from the state (Chandra, 2011).
The AFSPA has been implemented in Nagaland for several decades now, even after the agreement
on August 3, 2015, between the Naga insurgency group NSCN-IM general secretary Thuingaleng
Muivah and government interlocutor R. N. Ravi along with the present prime minister. This however happened after 80 rounds talks and 18 years after the 1997 ceasefire agreement (PTI, 2019).
Though the Assam is led by BJP and the laws and order have improved and the insurgency activities
have decreased with eighty-five per cent, the Governor is still extending the time for the Act (Singh,
2018). All these indicates the consistency of the government to make hold off the region despite the
improving situation of the respective states.
Devasahayam (2018) states that there were two incidents that made the court to order investigation
on cases of murder by the Indian army, the decades of killing Manipuri and the death of three civilians in Jammu and Kashmir in January 2018. The army officers gave a petition to the Supreme
Court, that the CBI cannot investigate them and also filled an FIR. The victims were called “antinationals” and asked the court to take initiatives to investigate the victims and even asked to give
compensation to the army who are accused in the case. But what the Supreme Court said is very
important:
“It does not matter whether the victim was a common person or a militant or a terrorist, nor
does it matter whether the aggressor was a common person or the state. The law is the same
for both and is equally applicable to both...This is the requirement of democracy and the
requirement of preservation of the rule of law and the preservation of individual
liberties” (ibid).
In 2005, a committee headed by Justice B.P. Jeevan Reddy of Supreme Court reviewed the Act. The
Committee in its report writes that:
"The Act is too sketchy, too bald and quite inadequate in several particulars… the Act, for
whatever reason, has become a symbol of oppression, an object of hate, and an instrument
of discrimination and high-handedness” (ibid).
The Act was supposed to fight the terrorism but it seems like the Indian army have used it as a
weapon to discriminate the laymen or the civilians. Even though there has been a recommendation
from the court and the committee to repeal the Act, the centre has been very slow in the process.
The Citizenship Act, 1955 defines Indian Citizenship and Illegal Migration. In 2016, the central
government exempted illegal migrants of Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Parsis, Christians from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan who arrived in India on or 6th, December was introduced in
Lok Sabha on July 19, 2016, to amend the Citizenship Act, 1955 making those groups eligible citizens and also allow cancellation of OCI if a person violated any law. There are three important
highlights of the bill which includes the making of illegal migrant of Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jainism, Parsis and Christian from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan an Indian Citizen. The Citizenship Bill, 2016 amends the bill of Citizenship Act 1955 and reduces 11 years requirement for
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citizenship to 6 years for the person from the mentioned religion and the countries. It also amends
that OCI cardholders can be cancelled if they violate any law of the Indian Constitution (PRS Legislative Research, n.d.).
The bill kept Jews and Muslims out, which made these illegal immigrants a target on the ground of
religion without any reasonable explanation. One of the main purposes of the legislature is to remove inequality but this one tends to show a clear definition of inequality. There is no specific
guidelines to as what is called as “disaffection” towards the constitution which leaves the ground
for misuse of this power (Thakur, 2018). The question arises whether this bill violates the right to
equality to all persons, citizens, and foreigners under Article 14 because it describes a differential
treatment to the illegal migrants based on their religion. So, the other Muslims and Atheist other
than the mentioned groups are denied for eligibility of the citizens, which clearly go against the Article 26 to 29. The bill does not define the reasons behind the differential treatment on the basis of
religion. The bill gives a wide ground to cancel OCI registration where fewer penalties or offences
committed after 5 years of registration may also be cancelled.
There have been certain reactions from the leaders towards the Amendment Bill from the eight
states of the Northeast. The Nagaland minister Temjen Imma Along urged MLAs “to come together
and fight for a common cause” and states that Article 371 (A) and Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulations, 1873 are pillars and to protect the Nagas from the Citizenship Bill (PTI, 2019). Nagaland
Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio passed a resolution in the assembly rejecting the Bill stating that it will
impact “the unique history and status of Nagas under the constitution” and also have the potential of
“changing the demographic profile, which will be against the interest of indigenous tribes and can
divert them of their constitutionally guaranteed political, cultural and economic rights”. As a result,
twenty-six opposition MLAs walked out of the Assembly (NTDV, 2019).
India Today (2016) writes that thousand have been protesting in Assam stating that it will threaten
the indigenous peoples as it will make a dumping ground for Hindu Bangladeshis and it contrasts
the Assam Accord of 1985 (illegal migrants from Bangladesh after March 25, 1971, would be deported). In Meghalaya, the president and the Vice President of United Democratic Party said that
the party have decided to leave the PJP led party North East Democratic Alliance (Plate-form of
non-congress parties) (Lyngdoh, 2019) after seeing the differences in the ideology where BJP wants
to pass the bill which the party is against it (Singh, 2019). Meghalaya is the first state cabinet to
pass a resolution condemning the bill even though there was a BJP representative. According to the
letter to the Editor Shillong Times, “BJP has failed to understand the process of articulating its Indianness in the region and the determination to pass the bill conveys the seriousness of BJPs to appeal
to its core Hindutva Constituency”(Eyben, 2019).
The opposition in Arunachal Pradesh is low comparing to other states but some of the observers
found it difficult to understand that the bill can easily be passed despite the Bengal Eastern Frontier
Regulation 1873. The CM of the state mentioned that the state is protected by the Inner Line Permit
(ibid). Despite ruled by BJP, CM is against the bill and the Manipur Civil Society launched protest
which leads to temporary bandh on public assembly under section 144, shutting down of internet
services. Advisor of Manipur Student Union was arrested in Delhi for alleged sedition in response
against the bill (ibid). The BJP’s State Chief of Mizoram threatened to dissolve the party if the bill
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was not cancelled. Sikkim’s All India Congress Committee had a small condemnation against the
bill. Only thirty per cent of the total population of Tripura were the minority who are against the bill
as the rest are migrants (ibid).
Despite the problems in the frontier, the central government is not considering the fact that the bill
will most certainly affect the region’s demographic profile and other serious issues relating to social, economic and political. The government has made a lot of pacts with few states (from the
British colonial era to Indian leaders), promises during campaign for the development of the region,
several kinds of permits to protect the people; but all these do not mean much with consistency of
the government to make this an Act without any reservations for this region, which in fact will affect the region tremendously comparing to other states of India.
Conclusions
The question arises whether social justice in the frontier of India have become significantly unjust
and unfair from what the constitution has promised for all the citizens of India, despite being called
the biggest democracy and having the longest constitution in the world. Along with all the promises
and talks made by different political parties of linking and restoring answers and justice from the
central to the periphery and to the outside world, India’s policies seems to be unmatched with the
need of these people. No doubt the government have made steps to find a solution to the flaws but
somehow fails and increase the burden for the people.
It seems the only way to provide social justice or any respect or the rights to live, equality, freedom
of expression, is listening to the voices especially of the tribals, consulting their respective states in
any decision making and bringing democratic atmosphere in the Northeast region. Time has come
to reconsider and amend laws like the AFSPA and Citizenship Bill which take away the basic rights
of the people in North-east region of India. By finding a better solution other than this Acts, will
decrease the political, social and psychological exclusion of people in the region from the rest of the
country, which is the only way to start from the scratch to solve the problem of social injustice.
References
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