GUWAHATI: North East Students Organisation (NESO), asked all Chief Ministers of the region to come jointly for the repeal of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA).
NESO staged a protest across the northeast on Thursday against the recent Oting firing where 14 civilians lost their lives in the Mon district of Nagaland.
NESO adviser Samujjal, speaking tomedia during the sit-in here, questioned why the Assam chief minister (who is also the NEDA convener) remained silent after his counterparts in Meghalaya, Nagaland, and Mizoram took a firm stance and sought repeal of AFSPA in the aftermath of the Mon attack.
“We welcome the strong stand taken by the chief ministers of Meghalaya, Nagaland, and Mizoram, and appeal to the other chief ministers of the region to unite and demand repeal of the Act,” Bhattacharjya, who is also the AASU chief adviser, said, adding that the AFSPA agitation would continue under the NESO platform until the Act is removed from the region and the “assailants” of civilians are not punished.
The leader went on to say that the Centre should stop treating the Northeast like a “step-daughter” and recognize that it is an important portion of the country.
It may be mentioned that Chief Ministers of Nagaland, Meghalaya, and Mizoram had already spoken against the contentious Act and demanded the repeal of AFSPA.