In the past 21 years, over 4,900 civilians have been killed in Jammu and Kashmir while more than 4,300 died in the northeastern states of Assam, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram, Meghalaya and Arunachal Pradesh, as per official figures. The number of civilian casualties remained as high as 3,900 in the LWE-affected districts of Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra, Jharkhand, Bihar and Andhra Pradesh.
The fatalities were result of either “fake encounters, firing between the security forces and militants, mistaken identity or targeted killings by terrorists”.
“At times, security forces are under tremendous pressure to come up with results. It may lead to a situation where these operations can go completely awry,” said a senior official at North Block while recalling the Pathribal encounter of 2000 when security forces under pressure killed 5 innocent men in Jammu and Kashmir.
Former special secretary (internal security) AP Maheshwari told ET: “Facts and circumstances are best known to the operational troops on the ground whose role is now being investigated, as learnt. The bottom line is that security forces must restore the faith of people in them by finding the truth, follow the rule of law and be empathetic.”
Section 19 of the Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993, deals with specific provisions related to complaints of violations of human rights by the armed forces. Interestingly, the National Human Rights Commission last month awarded Assam Rifles for their “sensibility and understanding of human rights” while debating whether “human rights is a stumbling block in fighting terrorism and Naxalism”.
Former CRPF DG Prakash Mishra said: “There have been instances of Naxals and terrorists using civilians as human shields and mingling with locals. There are chances of collateral damage in such a situation when forces are carrying out operations. However, in all cases, forces should make every effort to eradicate any civilian killing.”
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