A very good morning to all,…
Here we are with our next article based on current news which contains some difficult words, we will highlight and explain those words in order to improve your vocabulary skills and to have a good command on English language section. Hope this will help you with your preparation.
Article : Ending impunity under AFSPA
Source : The Hindu Article
“Accountability is a facet (पहलू) of the rule of law.” This established legal principle has acquired fresh significance after the Supreme Court ruled that the armed forces cannot escape investigation for excesses in the course of the discharge of their duty even in “disturbed areas”. In such notified (अधिसूचित) areas, security personnel enjoy statutory protection for their use of “special powers”. While hearing petitions (याचिकाओं) demanding an inquiry into 1,528 deaths in counter-insurgency operations and related incidents in Manipur, the court has said the provisions of the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act and the purported immunity it offers to the use of force “even to the extent of causing death” are not invincible (अजेय). Such legal protection, especially in a State that has been under AFSPA for nearly 60 years, has to yield to larger principles of human rights, and no allegation of the use of excessive or retaliatory force can be ignored without a thorough inquiry. This is a requirement both of democracy and for the preservation of the rule of law. The court has sought tabulated details on 62 specific cases in which there is some evidence that the deaths involved were not genuine operational casualties but extrajudicial killings or fake encounters. Even though the 85-page ruling draws its broad principles from an earlier Constitution Bench verdict in Naga People’s Movement of Human Rights (1997), it has special meaning in the present context, with a growing body of opinion that AFSPA should be repealed (निरसित) or amended.
The court is not unaware of the circumstances prevailing (प्रचलित) in Manipur and its neighbouring States. What has caused consternation is the near-total absence of any inquiry. In most cases, not even a first information report has been registered, and in some, the cases are against the victims. The court has acknowledged that additional powers have been given to the armed forces to deal with terrorism effectively. However, it also made clear that this cannot be an excuse for extrajudicial killings — whenever such allegations surface, they have to be investigated, regardless of whether the person concerned is a dreaded criminal, terrorist or insurgent (विद्रोही). The court has reminded the authorities of the circumstances in which the use of force, even to the point of causing death, is immune from prosecution and the Army’s own list of dos and don’ts while operating in a disturbed area. It has rejected the notion that every person bearing arms in a disturbed area is ipso facto an “enemy”. The occasion calls for an investigation into allegations of enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings, especially those already documented or partially probed (जांच की). It must give momentum to the demand for the repeal of AFSPA as a necessary step to end impunity (दण्ड से मुक्ति).
Meaning of the words highlighted in the article
1. Facet (noun) – one side of something many-sided, especially of a cut gem
Synonyms – phase, angle
Antonyms – back, rear
Ex: He shouldn’t try to control every facet of her life.
2. Notified (verb)– inform (someone) of something, typically in a formal or official manner
Synonyms – divulge, announce
Antonyms – Conceal, gather
Ex: Once in the authorities were notified, we must move on and not look back.
3. Petitions (noun) – a formal written request, typically one signed by many people, appealing to authority in respect of a particular cause
Synonyms – application, entreaty
Ex: She was asked to sign a petition against plans to build on the local playing fields.
4. Invincible(adjective) – too powerful to be defeated or overcome
Synonyms – impassable, indomitable
Antonyms – Breakable, destructible
Ex: This proved to be the last pitched battle of the war, the Danes never again venturing to attack their once more invincible enemy in the open field.
5. Repealed (verb) – revoke or annul (a law or act of parliament)
Synonyms – invalidate, revoke
Antonyms – sanction, enforce
Ex: The legislation was repealed five months later.
6. Prevailing (adjective) – existing at a particular time, current
Synonyms – prevalent, steady
Antonyms – individual, peculiar
Ex: The prevailing winds are from south to west.
7. Insurgent( noun) – a person fighting against a government or invading force, a rebel or revolutionary
Synonyms – revolutionary, revolting
Antonyms – obedient, subordinate
Ex: For his crimes against the state, he was tried as an enemy insurgent.
8. Probed(verb) – explore or examine (something), especially with the hands or an instrument
Synonyms –inquistion, detection
Ex: His gaze probed at the remote areas of her mind.
9. Impunity(noun) – exemption from punishment or freedom from the injurious consequences of an action
Synonyms –liberty, privilege
Antonyms – prohibition, denial
Ex: Today the Internet is a lawless society, hackers can break into computers with relative impunity.
Word of the Day
Rivulet
Meaning (English) – a small stream of water or another liquid.
Meaning (Hindi) – नाला
Synonyms – bourn, brook
Example – But, requesting anonymity, some customs staff told the BBC that at night, smugglers fix ropes at both sides of a rivulet that separates the Nepal-Tibet border.
उदाहरण –लेकिन, कुछ सीमा शुल्क कर्मियों ने अपना नाम न बताने का अनुरोध करते हुए बीबीसी को बताया कि नेपाल-तिब्बत सीमा को अलग करने वाली छोटी नदी के दोनों सिरों पर तस्कर रात के समय रस्सियां बांध देते हैं।
This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service - if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read the FAQ at http://ift.tt/jcXqJW.
Recommended article from FiveFilters.org: Most Labour MPs in the UK Are Revolting.
No comments:
Post a Comment