NEW DELHI — A botched security operation and subsequent violence in India’s northeast has left 14 civilians dead, sparking unrest and calls for the repeal of a special law that grants the armed forces immunity from prosecution in some regions.
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A unit of the Indian army in the state of Nagaland ambushed and killed a group of coal miners traveling in a pickup truck Saturday, mistaking them for members of a militant group, according to a police report reviewed by The Washington Post. Six men were killed and two critically injured in the shooting.
Residents gathered at the spot of the encounter near the village of Oting upon hearing the gunshots. Villagers torched three vehicles belonging to the forces after seeing the dead bodies of the men. The security personnel opened fire again, killing seven more civilians.
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According to the police report, eyewitnesses confirmed that the security forces opened fire “indiscriminately.” Violence erupted again Sunday, when a crowd of mourners vandalized and set fire to some buildings belonging to a different unit of the Indian army in the town of Mon, nearly 60 miles away. The personnel resorted to firing blanks, which agitated the nearly 700 protesters armed with sticks, pipes and machetes. One person died, and six others were wounded by gunfire.
T. John Longkumer, the top state police official, said the armed forces could have stopped the vehicle and inquired before opening fire on the group of miners. “It’s a total failure of credible intelligence,” he said.
Expressing regret over the incident, India’s home minister, Amit Shah, ordered an inquiry Monday. He promised swift justice and said the investigation will be completed in a month.
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“The situation is tense but under control,” Shah told Parliament. “All agencies have to ensure such incidents do not happen in the future.”
The Indian army said in a statement to local media that there was “credible intelligence of likely movement of insurgents.” It said the “cause of the unfortunate loss of lives is being investigated at the highest level.” The army said without providing details that its personnel suffered severe injuries and that one soldier died.
The killings have escalated demands for the repeal of the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, which is applicable in several states in the northeastern border region as well as in Kashmir in the north. The act grants soldiers wide-ranging powers to search, detain, arrest or shoot to kill people and gives them immunity from prosecution unless the government makes an exception, which rarely occurs.
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Critics say the “draconian” provisions of the law allow for excesses by security forces, including allegations of abuse, rape and extrajudicial encounters. Human Rights Watch called the law “a tool of state abuse.”
Neiphiu Rio, chief minister of Nagaland, and Conrad Sangma, chief minister of Meghalaya, another small state in the region, called for repeal of the controversial act. Both are allies of the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Multiple insurgent groups in Naga-inhabited areas have rebelled against Indian rule. While the government has opened peace talks with several groups, one faction based in neighboring Myanmar has refused to join the process. And peace talks with the largest faction of the armed insurgent group remain in limbo over its demands for shared sovereignty with a separate flag and constitution.
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K Elu Ndang, general secretary of the Naga Hoho, a civil society group in the state, said the weekend shootings occurred because of the cover the law provides to the forces. “The government of India has not been serious on this issue,” he said. “This is not the first time. How can they kill people like this?”
Naqvi reported from Guwahati, India.
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