| Omar confused over AFSPA; speaks for Army, revocation in one voice | | |
Early Times Report
JAMMU, Feb 14: Chief Minister Omar Abdullah is utterly confused over the stand that it should now take after the hanging of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru over the issue of application of AFSPA across the State.
In an interview to a national news gathering agency, Omar spoke both for Army as well for revocation of AFSPA. "Why is the AFSPA debate over? Who says? Why are you linking the two issues? There is no connection between the execution of Afzal Guru and the Armed Forces Special Powers Act," said Omar while adding that requirement of the Army is for insurgency and militancy dealing. He went on to say that as far as the Army requirement for law and order is concerned, that provision is anyway built into the Constitution. "You anyway have recourse to the Army in aid to civil administration that does not require AFSPA. So, don't link the two," Abdullah said. He stressed that Army requires it to operate.
"Yes, the Army requires it to operate. Yes, the Army continues to have a role, particularly on the Line of Control (LoC), and also in those areas where militancy still prevails. So, nobody is suggesting to you that AFSPA should be revoked from entire State in one go. But don't use the Afzal Guru's execution as an excuse to suggest that this is a topic that can no longer be discussed. Of course it can be," he added. He said that there is no connection between execution of 2001 Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru and enforcement of the controversial Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA). He added that using the Afzal Guru execution to suggest that AFSPA, as an issue, cannot be discussed is not acceptable. He said that the debate on where the AFSPA should be used or not used was not over. On the issue of Kashmir's first girl band not being allowed to perform, Abdullah said: "Yes, we can try and overtime address the deeper issues that concern people. Yes, I believe that we need to continue to press forward for a political resolution of the Kashmir issue that is perhaps the only thing that will change the narrative, otherwise no." |
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