Innocent civilians have been the biggest casualty of counter-insurgency operations across Jammu Kashmir, northeast and the Left-Wing-affected districts, even as security forces continue to enjoy special powers under the Armed Forces Special Powers Act, Economic times reported.
According to the report, Over 4,900 civilians have been killed in Jammu Kashmir in last 21 years, while more than 4,300 died in the northeastern states of Assam, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram, Meghalaya and Arunachal Pradesh.
The number of civilian casualties remained as high as 3,900 in the Left wing-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 Militants”.
The report quoted a senior official at North block as saying that the Indian Army killed five civilians in Pathribal fake encounter under immense pressure.
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”.