The outspoken Irom Sharmila seemed to have come to an absolute conclusion that though various organizations in Manipur are agitating with vigor to throw out the controversial Armed Forces Special Powers Act, the campaign has been adversely affected by the complete lack of consciousness among them on the need to march collectively. This communication gap has supposedly blunted the thrust being applied on the state government to push the latter to submission and extract the revocation of the Act. Though, the anti-AFSPA stir in Manipur began as early as the 1970s and the batons of spearheading the movement changed hands from one organization to another since then, the movement has become synonymous with Sharmila who has overshadowed each and everyone involved so far. At this moment, the organizations who have been waging parochial battles should consider the appropriateness of the timing for responding to her clarion call to mingle, especially with spirit of her struggle gaining wide acceptability in the north-east region and the rest of India.
The wind in favour of Sharmila’s campaign had been sweeping beyond the region ever since the realization dawned that it has no connection with any of the host of militant organizations operating to destabilize the country’s integrity or was sprouted by any secessionist agenda. The propaganda dispersed by the Indian military about the high risk factors of its soldiers as an argument for retaining AFSPA has now been discarded as loose talks without any basic foundation by an increasing number of civilians all across the country. In bringing this awareness, the national media and the burgeoning numbers of social activists who have pledged commitment to her cause for rooting out the anti-people law have made steadfast contributions. As the intensification in the scale of organizations of pro-Sharmila events over the years had showed, her supporters from outside the region has shown stoic resoluteness and are unlikely to buckle down without a fight or before obtaining their goal. Her support base is concentrated among social activists, intellectual circles, students and academicians as of now. But, a rapid expansion is inevitable as more and more people have acknowledged the merit of supporting the struggle to repeal heinous Act and sense it as their duty to come forward to save democratic values. This year, Save Sharmila Campaign was held in Panipat (Haryana), Srinagar (Jammu and Kashmir), Vidisha and Betul (Madhya Pradesh), Shahjahanpur (Uttar Pradesh), New Delhi and other parts of the country. In fact, the movement has hit the right chord with several national political parties, barring the Congress and BJP, and some of them have even okayed the inclusion of the repeal of AFSPA in their policy program.
Time and time again, the Congress-led UPA government has sought to blame the Army for the failure to repeal the draconian Act but both the state and Union governments have been abdicating responsibility on winding up the enjoyment of supreme authority by the army for too long and have deservedly earned the wrath of activists and the rights to be held equally guilty for existence of a violent military structure. The military will in all probability continue to act with marked arrogance, refuse to entertain discussion on repeal of AFSPA and deliberately attempt to sway the government against letting them down on the matter. But if the Save Sharmila Campaign continues to grow at this rate and evolves into a major national campaign, the Union government will have to make sacrifices of its own to protect the interest of the military.