Omars AFSPA alternative: Amend CrPC

Omar was here to garner support for his attempt to lift the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act or AFSPA from certain peaceful areas of the state.

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The National Conference-Congress government in J&K has initiated the process of amending the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) to remove two major anomalies in it which were pointed out by the security establishment to Chief Minister Omar Abdullah during his recent visit to New Delhi. Omar was here to garner support for his attempt to lift the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act or AFSPA from certain peaceful areas of the state.

Sources said during his meeting with Army brass,it was brought to Omars notice that even as he was strongly pleading the case for lifting AFSPA from some areas something that would leave security forces engaged in anti-militancy operations without any legal shield the version of the CrPC that is in force in the state doesnt provide the shield that the Army enjoys in the rest of the country.

Because of its special provision as per Article 370,J&K has its own Constitution as well as its own version of major laws,including the Indian Penal Code christened Ranbir Penal Code and the CrPC.

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It is learnt that Omar has instructed his officers to work on bringing amendments to the state version of the CrPC. One significant clause that the CrPC has but the J&K version of CrPC doesnt is Section 45,which deals with protection of members of the Armed Forces from arrest. The Sections says that no member of the armed forces of the Union can be arrested for anything done or purported to have been done by him in the discharge of his official duties except after obtaining the Central governments consent.

The Chief Minister wants this clause to be added to the J&K CrPC. We have begun consultations with the concerned departments, a source in J&K government told The Indian Express.

Another significant amendment that could be made is to strengthen Section 197 which deals with prosecution of public servants. Under the CrPC,no court can take cognizance of any offence committed by an official of the Government of India without the previous sanction of the Central government. In the J&K version of the CrPC,a watered down version of this section exists.

Sources said the J&K government is planning to move a Bill for amending the CrPC to include both these clauses in the next session of the state Legislature.

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Meanwhile,Attorney General Goolam E Vahanvati is learnt to have sided with the Ministry of Home Affairs on the issue of whether it is the J&K Governor or the state government that is empowered to revoke AFSPA from certain areas.

Governor to have last word on AFSPA: Omar

Having raked up the issue of withdrawing the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) from certain areas of the state,Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has admitted that the last word on the matter does not lie with him. “It is the Governor who has to take the final decision on the matter,” he told mediapersons at a dinner hosted by him for his Cabinet colleagues,bureaucrats and prominent citizens here on Wednesday night. “It is not only AFSPA,the Governor has the final word on each and every decision taken by the state government on any issue.”

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