After combating insurgency in NE the army now fights to protect its reputation

NIRMALYA BANERJEE, EOI, KOLKATA, AUGUST 11, 2023 : On a day a leading national daily carried a signed article by Chief Minister of Assam Himanta Biswa Sarma congratulating the BJP government at the Centre on the withdrawal of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act from many parts of the north-east, and three days after the Spear Corps of the army that is engaged in mostly counter-insurgency operations in Nagaland and Manipur issued  a statement in twitter saying there were attempts to malign the image of the Assam Rifles in Manipur, the PIB on Friday circulated an article by Major Ph. Manidh on Singha (Retired) where the retired officer hailed the role of the army deployed in the north-east under the AFSPA in protecting the sovereignty of the nation, restoring peace and launching the north-east on the path of progress. 

In between, the civil society in Manipur has betrayed a deep divide on the role of the Assam Rifles; with the Meira Paibi, the influential women’s organization of the Meitei community demanding that the Assam Rifles be withdrawn from the strife-torn parts of the state and replaced by the Manipur Rifles while women’s group of the Kuki community have petitioned to the Prime Minister that the Assam Rifles must continued to be deployed for the protection. 

While the Assam Rifles is a paramilitary force under the Union Home Ministry but under the operational control of the army and led by army officers, according to Major Singha the regular army is “cutting down its once sprawling counter insurgency deployment (in the NE) to a single brigade due to the improved security situation.”

Major Singha has recalled the role of the Indian military and para-military forces “in maintaining stability and peace in the region” facing challenges in the form of “insurgencies, cross-border issues with neighbouring countries and separatist movements.” 

He has hailed the “vital role” of the Indian Army and the Assam Rifles in maintaining law and order in the NE and safeguarding the borders,” shared with Myanmar, China, Bhutan and Bangladesh. 

The challenges that the armed forces had faced included harsh terrain, lack of infrastructure like road sand bridges and a hostile environment. During the period of insurgency in Nagaland in the 1950s, the AFSPA was enacted in 1958. Subsequently the insurgencies in Mizoram, Assam and Tripura followed. 

In Assam, after Operation Rhino was launched in the 1990s, four divisions of the army were put into action, backed by 270 companies of para-military forces, to neutralize insurgents of the United Liberation Front of Asom. 

By the end of the first week of operations, 258 activists and sympathizers were held and 12 camps were raided. Recalling “Operation Golden Bird,” Major Singha has citied the cross-border issued involved in tackling insurgencies in the NE. 

The National Socialist Council of Nagaland, insurgent groups in Manipur, ULFA and the National Democratic Front of Bodoland used to acquire weapons from Thailand which were brought to Bangladesh and subsequently transported to the NE. 

 Under Operation Golden Bird, an Indo-Myanmar military operation carried out in 1995 by the 57 Mountain Division of the army. A large group of rebels who had acquired a substantial quantity of weapons and were transporting them from Wyakung Beach on the Myanmar – Bangladesh coast to Manipur were intercepted in an ambush and the weapons were seized. 

Subsequently the AFSPA has been revoked in some states, such as Tripura, due to a substantial improvement in the situation. The Centre has been able to resolve some of the conflicts with assistance from the military and various peace accords have been signed.