STAFF Reporter
GUWAHATI, Nov 3 – A few days after Meghalaya Governor and Intelligence Bureau deputy director advocated repeal of the Armed Forces Special Power Act from the North East, Maj Gen (retd) Gaganjit Singh today lent his support to the repeal of the ‘controversial’ Act. “The AFSPA should be repealed from the region as it has not given security forces any sweeping power, as perceived by many,” Maj Gen (retd) Singh told reporters here, on the sidelines of a day-long seminar on counter-terrorist operation organised by the Red Horns Division.

“Any person picked by the Army has to be handed over to the police within 24 hours and a medical examination done. A picked person is in a state of shock during the initial hours and we can hardly ever extract any information from him and, moreover, it also makes them psychologically tough knowing that they cannot be kept with the Army for more than a day.

He, however, cautioned against falling victim to a general mistake of comparing the success of a specific measure in one State with that of other.

“Every State has its different reasons for insurgency and the solution would also be unique,” Maj Gen (retd) Singh said.

He added, “Manipur can not be the yardstick for measuring the present status in Assam, for example.”

The voice for repeal of AFSPA had grown stronger in the region after Meghalaya Governor RS Mooshahary and IB deputy director R Ravi had advocated its at least temporary withdrawal at a meeting in Shillong last week.