Centre to set up high-level committee to examine possibility of lifting AFSPA from Nagaland
New Delhi, Dec 26: Apparently to soothe the rising tension in Nagaland over the killing of 14 civilians, the Centre has decided to set up a high-level committee to examine the possibility of lifting the controversial Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act in the northeastern state where it has been operational for decades, according to officials.
Disciplinary action is also likely to be taken against the Army personnel, who were directly involved in the botched-up counter-insurgency operation in Nagaland's Mon district in early December, after a fair inquiry.
The Army personnel may be placed under suspension pending the probe, a senior government official said.
Protests have been going on in several districts of Nagaland for the withdrawal of the AFSPA, ever since an Army unit killed the 14 civilians in Mon mistaking them as insurgents.
The AFSPA empowers security forces to conduct operations and arrest anyone without any prior warrant. It also gives immunity to the forces if they shoot someone dead.
The decision to constitute a high-level committee was taken at a meeting chaired by Union Home Minister Amit Shah and attended by chief ministers of Nagaland and Assam Neiphiu Rio and Himanta Biswa Sarma respectively on December 23, an official said.
Nagaland Deputy Chief Minister Y Patton and former chief minister of Nagaland T R Zeliang also attended the meeting.
A Nagaland government statement said that the committee will look into the possibility of the withdrawal of the AFSPA in Nagaland and a decision will be taken on the basis of its recommendations.
The Nagaland chief minister also tweeted on Sunday: Briefed the media with regard to the meeting chaired by Hon'ble @HMOIndia Shri @AmitShah on Dec' 23, 2021 in New Delhi. Grateful to Amit Shah ji for taking up the matter with utmost seriousness. The State Govt. appeals to all sections to continue to maintain a peaceful atmosphere".
While Additional Secretary in the Union Home Ministry Piyush Goyal will head the committee, Chief Secretary and DGP of Nagaland, an Inspector General rank officer of the Assam Rifles and a representative of the CRPF will be its members.
Disciplinary proceedings, possibly court of inquiry, will be initiated against the army unit and personnel, who were directly involved in the Mon district incident and action will be immediately taken on the basis of a fair inquiry, another official said.
The Nagaland government will provide government jobs to the next of kin of the deceased 14 people.
The home minister had informed Parliament on December 6 that "a team of 21 para-commandos of the Indian Army laid an ambush for insurgents in Mon district of Nagaland on December 4 but "it turned out to be a case of mistaken identity".
He also expressed regret over the incident in which civilians were killed by security personnel.
Shah had also said that a Special Investigation Team (SIT) has been constituted and directed to complete the investigation within one month.
"Based on inputs received by the Indian Army about movement of the insurgents near Tiru village in Tizit area of Mon district, a team of 21 para-commandos of Indian Army laid an ambush in the evening of December 4, 2021.
"During the ambush, a vehicle approached the location and it was signaled to stop. However, the vehicle tried to flee, following which the vehicle, suspected of carrying insurgents, was fired upon resulting in the killing of six out of eight persons travelling in the vehicle.
"However, it turned out to be a case of mistaken identity. The two persons who sustained injuries were evacuated to the medical facilities by the Army personnel," he said.
"Upon receiving the news, local villagers surrounded the Army team, burnt two vehicles and assaulted them, resulting in the death of one Security Force (SF) personnel and injuries to several others. To disperse the crowd, SFs opened fire which resulted in the killing of 7 more civilians and injuring some others, he said.
Briefed the media with regard to the meeting chaired by Hon'ble @HMOIndia Shri @AmitShah on Dec' 23, 2021 in New Delhi. Grateful to Amit Shah ji for taking up the matter with utmost seriousness. The State Govt. appeals to all sections to continue to maintain a peaceful atmosphere pic.twitter.com/a8CLuw3MM6
— Neiphiu Rio (@Neiphiu_Rio) December 26, 2021
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Real Madrid fines Valverde and Tchouaméni half a million euros each for altercation
Barcelona (AP): Real Madrid slapped players Federico Valverde and Aurélien Tchouaméni with half-a-million-euro ($588,000) fines on Friday for their altercation during practice.
The massive fines came a day after the midfielders tussled when the team trained. Valverde said in a post on social media on Thursday that no punches were thrown. But Valverde knocked his head on a table and he suffered a small cut that required a brief hospital visit.
On social media, Valverde initially called it a “meaningless fight” with a teammate and said “everything has been blown out of proportion."
His employers, however, considered it a significant enough breach of team discipline to nail both Valverde and Tchouaméni with fines that bite even the bank account of a top soccer player. The half-a-million euro penalties reflect the reputational damage the club was enduring in a chaotic end to a disappointing season.
In a statement, the 15-time European champion said its disciplinary action was concluded after both players expressed to the club “their complete remorse for what happened and apologized to one another.”
Madrid added they also apologized to their teammates, the coaching staff and club supporters, as well as showing their willingness to accept whatever disciplinary action the club deemed “opportune.”
Tchouaméni was back training with Madrid on Friday, two days before they play at Barcelona in a clasico. Madrid has to win otherwise Barcelona will be crowned La Liga champion.
After being notified of the fine, he posted a public apology to the club and its fans on social media.
“What happened this week in training is unacceptable,” Tchouaméni wrote. "I say this while thinking about the example we are expected to set for young people, whether in football or at school.
“Above all, I am sorry for the image we projected of the club.”
Valverde was not at practice due to the head knock.
Both players are set to play in the World Cup next month, with Tchouaméni playing for France and Valverde for Uruguay.
Chaotic end to a poor season
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The run-in between the players, who for seasons have played side by side in Madrid's midfield, came after they argued this week in previous training sessions. But tempers boiled over on Thursday. Spanish media was rife with reports that the players previously disagreed over the club's decision to let coach Xabi Alonso go after just months on the job.
It was not the only altercation involving Madrid players during training this week. Álvaro Carreras confirmed he was in a “minor” incident with a teammate. Spanish media said he and fellow defender Antonio Rüdiger got into a scuffle.
Álvaro Arbeloa, the coach who was promoted from Madrid's reserve team when Alonso was fired in January, will face tough questions on what went wrong inside the changing room when he gives a press conference on Saturday ahead of the clasico at Camp Nou.
Madrid is facing a second consecutive campaign without a major trophy amid rumors in the Spanish media that club president Florentino Pérez is considering bringing back Jose Mourinho to straighten out his underperforming team.
