Correspondent
IMPHAL, August 20
[dropcap]M[/dropcap]anipur’s human rights activist Irom Sharmila, who is on a fast for about 13 years demanding the repeal of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA), has been released from the judicial custody following court’s order around 5.45 pm on Wednesday evening.
On Tuesday, A Guneshwar Sharma, Sessions judge, Manipur East, passed an order to release Sharmila from the custody saying that the prosecution has failed to produce sufficient evidence to prove the charge of attempting to commit suicide.
Sharmila known as Iron lady of Manipur, who launched her fast unto death agitation demanding repeal of AFSPA which gives security forces sweeping powers to search, arrest or shoot people since November 2000 after the troops of 8 Assam Rifles gunned down 10 innocent lives at Malom near Imphal on November 2, 2000, had been detained in the judicial custody on the charge of attempting to commit suicide under the under section 309 of IPC.Soon after her release from the security ward of the Jawaharlal Nehru Institute of Medical Science (JNIMS) hospital Porompat in Imphal, responding to questions by the waiting reporters on Tuesday’s court ruling, she said, “I feel happy for recognizing my political movement. I’ll not change my stand till my goal is achieved. I love to live like human beings.”
Escorted by functionaries of Sharmila Kanba Lup, a women folks organization supporting Sharmila’s agitation, the human rights activist has moved to a thatched house near the JNIMS hospital to continue her fast unto death agitation as done in the past.
Though there is no sign of immediate re-arresting the striker as done in the past as the court on Tuesday dismisses the charges against her, everybody is in a wait and watch situation as the state authority is yet to react on it.
However sharmila believes that her movement will be achieved if the people extended their support honestly. “I believe it will be successful in its due course of time if people willingly support the movement”, Sharmila said. “I wish India’s Prime Minister to recognize me an Indian citizen and do the needful”, she added when sought her comment on the new government at Centre.
Meanwhile Sharmila’s elder brother Irom Singhajit speaking this reporter,termed Tuesday’s court verdict as a stepping stone to her sister’s movement for the removal of ASFSPA. “I wished for an early solution,” Singhajit who had been supporting his sister’s movement since the beginning.
