Indian army has gunned down 13 innocent daily-wage coal miners in Nagaland

[Heisenberg111]

So this news just came up in my twitter feed. So I thought to share it here.

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/12/5/indian-villagers-protest-after-army-mistakenly-opens-fire

 

[street cricketer]

What terrible waste of lives, based on dubious "intelligence reports". Takes the mind back to when a poor Afghan family was shot down with a missile based on similar "intelligence reports" a few weeks back.

Very easy for the armed forces to say "the incident is deeply regretted", while it's a lifetime of regret for the families affected. Incidents like this will help turn Nagaland into the next Kashmir.

 

[m.shah]

Such a sad news

 

[Ahmad-GERMANFC]

Is this insurgency there a real thing even?

I know in chattisgarh and surrounding it was a considerable threat but I feel these Nagaland type states it’s irrelevant

 

[street cricketer]

Is this insurgency there a real thing even?

I know in chattisgarh and surrounding it was a considerable threat but I feel these Nagaland type states it’s irrelevant

Chattisgarh has a Naxal insurgency (not separatist in nature) whereas Nagaland has a Naga separatist insurgency, but it's very low level compared to Kashmir. Movement was bigger in the past decades but has largely died down except a few stray attacks by a few rebels. But incidents like this can sour the image and kick start the insurgency once again.

 

[Ahmad-GERMANFC]

Chattisgarh has a Naxal insurgency (not separatist in nature) whereas Nagaland has a Naga separatist insurgency, but it's very low level compared to Kashmir. Movement was bigger in the past decades but has largely died down except a few stray attacks by a few rebels. But incidents like this can sour the image and kick start the insurgency once again.

But they have nothing of value in their state so why would they wanna leave. I’m guessing they gain more by being part of Indian state through federal grants while contributing little to the exchequer. They also have tribal ****** people who don’t contribute much (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/******_people)

 

[PakLFC]

After the killing of the Sri Lankan in Pak the India is telling Pak we can do much better then that. Face facts, the entire subcontinent is a joke! I feel sorry for all the people stuck in that massive hell hole. All we will now see is politicians argue over who is to blame.

 

[PakLFC]

Chattisgarh has a Naxal insurgency (not separatist in nature) whereas Nagaland has a Naga separatist insurgency, but it's very low level compared to Kashmir. Movement was bigger in the past decades but has largely died down except a few stray attacks by a few rebels. But incidents like this can sour the image and kick start the insurgency once again.

I take it you have visited Nagaland that you are sure what is happening there? Real problem is the RSS/BJP don't like that most Naga's are Christians. Next stop on the BJP hate train could be Catholic dominated Goa.

 

[Itachi]

I take it you have visited Nagaland that you are sure what is happening there? Real problem is the RSS/BJP don't like that most Naga's are Christians. Next stop on the BJP hate train could be Catholic dominated Goa.

The extreme movements in North east isn't anything related to religion rather ethnicity. Be it Assam or manipur or Nagaland.....

Assam has insurgency issues of illegal Bangladeshi where as Nagaland has insurgency issues from Myanmar. Add two groups NSCN (K) and NSCN (I-M) in the mixture and it gets complicated.

 

[street cricketer]

But they have nothing of value in their state so why would they wanna leave. I’m guessing they gain more by being part of Indian state through federal grants while contributing little to the exchequer.

It's why the insurgency doesn't have great public support like it has in Kashmir.

They also have tribal ****** people who don’t contribute much (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/******_people)

Whatever link you have provided seems to have neen censored. I can't open it.

 

[James]

<I>The Indian Express:</I>

<B>Nagaland killings: In Lok Sabha, Amit Shah says ‘vehicle was signalled to stop, tried to flee’.</B>

Expressing regret on the Nagaland shooting, Amit Shah said all agencies have been asked to ensure that no such “unfortunate” incident recurs.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday addressed Lok Sabha on the Nagaland firing incident and the ensuing violence, which led to the death of 14 civilians and a soldier.

Shah said the Army had received information on the movement of extremists in Oting, upon which the 21 Para Commando unit laid an ambush.

“A vehicle reached there, it was signalled to stop but it tried to flee. On suspicion of the vehicle carrying extremists, it was fired upon,” Shah said, adding that six out of its eight occupants died on spot.

“It was later found to be a case of mistaken identity. Two people who were injured were taken to the nearest health centre by the Army,” he added.

Shah said that after receiving news of the incident, local villagers surrounded the Army unit and set two vehicles on fire. During the violence, one soldier was killed while several others were injured, he said.

“Security forces had to resort to firing in self-defence and to disperse the crowd. This caused the death of seven more civilians, some were injured,” he said in the Lower House.

The Home Minister also informed the House that an agitated crowd of around 250 people vandalised the company operating base (COB) of Assam Rifles in Mon city on December 5. “Assam Rifles had to open fire to disperse the crowd. This caused the death of one more civilian,” Shah said.

Shah also informed the House that the situation in the region is tense but under control. “Current situation is tense but under control. On December 5, the Nagaland DGP and Commissioner visited the site. An FIR was registered and keeping the seriousness of the matter in mind, the probe was handed over to State Crime Police Station,” the Home Minister said.

Expressing regret, Shah said all agencies have been asked to ensure that no such “unfortunate” incident recurs. He also said a Special Investigation Team (SIT) has been formed to probe the incident, which will submit its report within 30 days.

 

[MenInG]

New Delhi: AFSPA - the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Protection Act - does not mean security forces "can go around just killing anybody", retired Supreme Court judge Justice Madan Lokur told NDTV Monday, amid outrage over the deaths of 14 civilians during a botched Army op in Nagaland this weekend.

Justice Lokur also underlined the "extremely defective" application of AFSPA - which gives armed forces the power to conduct ops anywhere in enforced states and arrest anyone without a warrant.

AFSPA also protects security forces from all legal proceedings unless it is cleared by the centre. In the context of the Nagaland violence and killings, there are concerns the centre will cite AFSPA to protect the Army's elite 21 Para Special Forces from investigation by Nagaland Police.

Referring to the operation in Nagaland, Justice Lokur said ''the armed forces proactively did whatever they did. So, it would certainly qualify as an 'intention to kill'... depending on the investigation it could, perhaps, be called 'intention to kill'."

Justice Lokur - who was part of the Supreme Court bench that in 2017 directed the CBI to probe dozens of extra-judicial killings by the Army and police in Manipur, when AFSPA was in force there - also told NDTV, "I don't know how they (Nagaland Police) are going to investigate."

''I think there should be an independent investigation done by people - by eminent people. They should be the ones to investigate because there are sufficient chances, if I may use that expression, there are sufficient chances for the armed forces to try and cover up the incident," he said.

According to a preliminary report by Nagaland Police, a group of villagers converged on the scene of Saturday's failed ambush after hearing gunshots. They reportedly found 21 Para SF personnel trying to wrap bodies in tarpaulin sheets and take them back to their base.

The Army has categorically denied any attempt at a cover-up; sources said the plan was to move the bodies to a police station and that there was never any effort to hide or dispose of the corpses.

Justice Lokur also spoke about claims in the Nagaland Police FIR that it was the "intention" of the security forces to "murder and injure innocent civilians".

''Here, because you know, that it was not in self-defence, so to speak, but proactive action taken by the armed forces, it could amount to murder. Again... depending upon the investigations and whatever the facts are revealed, eventually," Justice Lokur said.

The Army had said its soldiers were forced to open fire in "self-defence" when faced with villagers attacking with machetes.

A political and legal landmine, the controversial AFSPA - which was extended by six months in Nagaland in June - has been often attacked by the opposition and even some allies of the ruling BJP.

After what happened this weekend, those attacks resurfaced and, this time, they were led by Nagaland Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio, whose NDPP is a BJP ally.

NDTV

 

[JaDed]

RIP , time to remove AFSPA from North East.

 

[IAJ]

RIP , time to remove AFSPA from North East.

Will be interesting to see how many indian posters here agree with you.

 

[JaDed]

Will be interesting to see how many indian posters here agree with you.

Most actually used to till 3-4 years ago. There is a common census among Indians that we don’t treat North Easterners with dignity and they get ignored often.

 

[JaDed]

Explained: Why Nagaland killings have rekindled debate on AFSPA

https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/why-nagaland-killings-rekindled-debate-on-afspa-7659242/


“Addressing reporters after attending the funeral services of the civilians at Oting in Nagaland’s Mon district, Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio said he has urged the Centre to remove AFSPA from Nagaland as the law is a “black spot on the image of the country”.

 

[leonidas_alexandar]

Absolutely heart breaking. While you cannot obviously get back the lives lost - at least swift justice to the victims' families to some extent will heal some of the pain. The armed forces' impunity must come to an end.

On another note - the general levels of ignorance among - for lack of a better expression - 'mainland Indians' about the North East is truly abominable. Most people have no idea about anything pertaining to the North East and such ignorance of course begets apathy too.

 

[PakLFC]

The extreme movements in North east isn't anything related to religion rather ethnicity. Be it Assam or manipur or Nagaland.....

Assam has insurgency issues of illegal Bangladeshi where as Nagaland has insurgency issues from Myanmar. Add two groups NSCN (K) and NSCN (I-M) in the mixture and it gets complicated.

How do you know it has nothing to do with religion? In India religion is the most important topic nowadays.

 

[Dingolfy]

How do you know it has nothing to do with religion? In India religion is the most important topic nowadays.

Because it has long been there before the rise of BJP. I have been to North-East and tribal identities matter there more than religion.
That’s why they are having even BJP CMs

 

[Itachi]

How do you know it has nothing to do with religion? In India religion is the most important topic nowadays.

Different parts of India has different issues. Religious clash never occurred in North east. But based upon ethnicity, there have been many instances. I've spent my whole life in north east.

Be it Assam agitation 1985 or division of the states or even extremist groups in North east, none deals with religion.

 

[PakLFC]

Because it has long been there before the rise of BJP. I have been to North-East and tribal identities matter there more than religion.
That’s why they are having even BJP CMs

Just because it has been there forever does not mean it is not a religious issue. The Kashmir issue has been there for decades too.

 

[PakLFC]

Different parts of India has different issues. Religious clash never occurred in North east. But based upon ethnicity, there have been many instances. I've spent my whole life in north east.

Be it Assam agitation 1985 or division of the states or even extremist groups in North east, none deals with religion.

Religion has now become the defining factor since the BJP came in to power. Even churches are attacked in India nowadays.

 

[Itachi]

Religion has now become the defining factor since the BJP came in to power. Even churches are attacked in India nowadays.

North east is different. The religious clashes mostly around Central India.

We have different demography, different tribes, different issues than central India.

 

[MenInG]

Nagaland is witnessing a drastic change of events in past one month after the unfortunate incident in Mon. While Social organisations, Political Parties, and community leaders are aggressively campaigning for repulsion of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) from entire Northeast India, the most worrying factor is the increasing hostility of locals towards the Government of India and its Armed Forces. People and tribal leaders who were close to the security forces till a few days back are openly criticising their actions without even realising the reality behind it. They have been venomised to such an extent that convincing them seems impossible.Also Read - Centre Extends AFSPA In Nagaland For 6 Months

Indian Army has been known for its utmost standards of professionalism and fair conduct. The incident at Mon-Nagaland where 14 innocent lives were lost was initially termed as a ‘case of mistaken identity’. It is beyond doubt that there was a big mistake from the soldiers of Special Forces who were carrying out an operation in that area based on credible intelligence but in order to punish the guilty ones, a free and fair inquiry is a must. While the Indian Army has appointed its own Court of Inquiry headed by a senior Major General, Nagaland government too constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to parallelly investigate the circumstances and it is the need of this hour that truth must prevail for which one must wait for both the teams to complete their inquiries and submit the reports.

Recently, officials of the Nagaland State-appointed Special Investigation Team (SIT) which has no connection with the Indian Army, took some of the people from the Army unit involved in the incident for recreation of the events at the site. Usually, such things are common even in the normal course of actions but in this case, not only a particular section of media but tribal leaders too vehemently opposed the action terming it a biased approach. Not only this, but these tribal groups are also resisting questions that are being asked to the locals by the Special Investigation Team (SIT). At the same time, these bodies and their associated media houses are demanding an immediate punishment to the soldiers of the Armed Forces even without an inquiry and fixing of responsibility. Although the anger of the tribal leaders is well understood and that is why the Government of Nagaland, as well as the Indian Army, have fixed the timelines of completion of their inquiries but the demand for immediate punishment, not cooperating with the inquiry and creating hurdles in the inquiry procedures are beyond any comprehension. Someone is using these tribals and forcing them to arm-twist the government, stop the inquiry, and punish the Soldier of Armed Forces without any investigation. Logically, this seems to be a clear-cut approach to derail the inquiry procedure. Certainly, someone somewhere is petrified that in case inquiry is carried out in a free and fair manner, some skeletons may fall out of the cupboard which may not suit their current narratives.

There have been several cases in Northeast India as well as Jammu & Kashmir where similar incidents happened in the past and Army delivered free and fair justice. There is no need to explain how professionally these inquiries were conducted and justice was delivered. In 2018, a Major General, two officers, three Junior Commissioned officers, and a soldier were given life imprisonment by an Army court for the alleged death of 5 students in a fake encounter in Assam’s Tinsukia district. Similarly, in the 2010 Machhil encounter case, two officers including a Colonel and three Soldiers were given life terms, and recently an Army Captain and three soldiers have been court-martialled for a fake encounter in Amshipora-Shopian which happened on 18th July 2020. Indian Army has a no-nonsense policy towards such incidents and that’s why it has been actively punishing the people involved in any kind of Human Rights violations and extrajudicial killings.

Even for the most heinous crimes, judicial procedure and due process of law are followed in order to establish culpability and accountability, which is the reason why a court of inquiry, as well as SIT, was immediately ordered post the ambush. Calls for immediate justice can lead to injustice, both for the personnel involved and the kin of the killed miners. The Army has robust and credible institutions that are well versed in the process of instituting and culminating court of inquiries of this nature and there is a past precedent of the impartiality and fairness with which these investigations are conducted.

https://www.india.com/opinion/killing-of-miners-in-nagaland-an-accident-or-conspiracy-5164900/

 

[transparent opacity]

Botched Nagaland Ambush: State Investigators Explain What Went Wrong

The SIT's investigation indicated the 21 Para Special Forces soldiers did not follow SOPs during the ambush that killed 14 civilians returning home in a pickup truck at night.

New Delhi: The Nagaland Police has named 30 Army special forces soldiers, including a Major, in a chargesheet over a botched ambush last year that killed 14 civilians. The police has filed the chargesheet based on a probe conducted by their Special Investigation team. The SIT alleged the soldiers did not follow standard operation procedures, or SOPs, and rules of engagement.

The SIT's investigation indicated the 21 Para Special Forces soldiers did not follow SOPs during the ambush that killed 14 civilians returning home in a pickup truck at night. A soldier died in a subsequent attack by villagers, who surrounded the jawans in anger, after the incident on December 4, 2021.

A large part of Nagaland is under the Armed Forces (Special) Powers Act, or AFSPA, which protects security forces from legal action without the centre's sanction.

https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/bot...went-wrong-3058506#pfrom=home-ndtv_topstories

 

[WhenSultansBowled]

Botched Nagaland Ambush: State Investigators Explain What Went Wrong

The SIT's investigation indicated the 21 Para Special Forces soldiers did not follow SOPs during the ambush that killed 14 civilians returning home in a pickup truck at night.

New Delhi: The Nagaland Police has named 30 Army special forces soldiers, including a Major, in a chargesheet over a botched ambush last year that killed 14 civilians. The police has filed the chargesheet based on a probe conducted by their Special Investigation team. The SIT alleged the soldiers did not follow standard operation procedures, or SOPs, and rules of engagement.
The SIT's investigation indicated the 21 Para Special Forces soldiers did not follow SOPs during the ambush that killed 14 civilians returning home in a pickup truck at night. A soldier died in a subsequent attack by villagers, who surrounded the jawans in anger, after the incident on December 4, 2021.

A large part of Nagaland is under the Armed Forces (Special) Powers Act, or AFSPA, which protects security forces from legal action without the centre's sanction.

https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/bot...went-wrong-3058506#pfrom=home-ndtv_topstories

This is basically a license to kill without any kind of consequences. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Armed_Forces_(Special_Powers)_Act

It goes against any sort of human rights. State's terrorism against its citizens.

 

[MenInG]

Police in India's north-eastern state of Nagaland have charged 30 soldiers over the killing of civilians in a botched military operation last year.

The police said the soldiers resorted to "indiscriminate and disproportionate firing" when they shot at miners, mistaking them for militants.

Six miners were killed in the firing last December near the Myanmar border.

Eight more civilians and an Indian soldier died when angry locals confronted troops.

The shootings in the Mon district was the deadliest spell of violence in years in Nagaland, which has long been roiled by an insurgency led by local militant groups.

The Indian army has since apologised for the killings and ordered its own investigation.

But protesters in the state have been also pressing for the government to repeal the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA), a controversial federal law that gives the army sweeping powers, including protection from prosecution for soldiers who mistakenly kill civilians.

BBC

 

[FearlessRoar]

Send Illegal Immigrants Back To Myanmar, Say Naga Groups In Letter To Amit Shah

After the Manipur government, several Naga civil bodies and organisations in the state have asked Home Minister Amit Shah to repatriate illegal Myanmar immigrants to their country, sources said on Saturday. Sources said that the Naga organisations submitted a memorandum to the Home Minister earlier this week requesting him to deport illegal Myanmar immigrants.

The memorandum pointed out that around 5,457 illegal immigrants from Myanmar are being sheltered in eight Tangkhul villages in Manipur's Kamjong district adjoining Myanmar and they have outnumbered the local residents.

After visiting the Indo-Myanmar border areas recently on a fact-finding mission, the United Naga Council (UNC), Naga Women's Union (NWU), All Naga Students Association Manipur (ANSAM) and Naga People's Movement for Human Rights (NPM-HR) submitted the memorandum to the Home Minister.

UNC leader said a section of migrants are involved in illegal and anti-social activities and the law enforcing agencies are unable to effectively control such activities.

"Although biometrics have been captured for 5,173 persons, monitoring the activities of adult male inmates (illegal immigrants) has become a huge challenge as the authority cannot regularly conduct verification exercises amidst the fluctuating numbers of inmates between daytime and night in those makeshift refugee camps," the UNC leader said, requesting anonymity.

A Manipur home department official said the state government in coordination with the Ministry of External Affairs and the central security forces has deported 115 Myanmar nationals, including women and children in three phases since March 8.

The Myanmar immigrants have been deported through the Moreh border in Manipur's Tengnoupal district.

Manipur has around 400 km of unfenced border with Myanmar.

Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh said earlier that although India is not a signatory to the 1951 Refugee Convention, it has given shelter and aid to those fleeing the crisis in Myanmar on humanitarian grounds.

Since the military took over Myanmar more than three years ago, at least 8,000 Myanmarese have taken shelter in Manipur's Tengnoupal, Chandel, Churachandpur and Kamjong districts, while over 36,000 people have taken shelter in Mizoram.

Following the advice of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), the Manipur government has been collecting the biometric details of the Myanmar nationals sheltered in the state.

The Mizoram government, however, initially turned down the MHA's appeal to collect biometric data of the Myanmar refugees. Later, the state government decided to collect the biometric details of the refugees.

Send Illegal Immigrants Back To Myanmar, Say Naga Groups In Letter To Amit Shah

Naga civil bodies and organisations in Manipur have asked Home Minister Amit Shah to repatriate illegal Myanmar immigrants to their country, sources said on Saturday.

www.ndtv.com