-The Times of India The Supreme Court on Monday took serious note of a PIL alleging that there had been apathy on the Centre and Manipur government's part to bring to book the guilty among armed forces and state police, which allegedly were responsible for 1,528 extra-judicial killings in last 30 years. The impact of the magnitude of extra-judicial killings of innocent citizens in Manipur was visible on a bench of Justice...

-Deccan Herald Rights activists led by Aruna Roy on Monday demanded that the proposed Whistleblowers Protection Bill and the Grievance Redressal Bill be made more stringent. At a public debate involving intellectuals and MPs, the activists suggested that both the Bills, pending in Parliament, should be amended. The Whistleblowers Bill has been passed by Lok Sabha and is awaiting Rajya Sabha nod, while the Grievance Redressal Bill is still in Lok Sabha. National Campaign...

-The Indian Express The Army is against thinning of troops in Jammu and Kashmir and has reiterated its position that the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act should not be withdrawn from certain parts as has been proposed by the state government. Army Chief General Bikram Singh, who visited the Northern Command last month, is believed to have recommended to the Ministry of Defence that thinning of troops is not feasible at present...

The army is bristling at a fresh move in the government to dilute or revoke the Armed Forces Special Powers Act. The AFSPA gives the army extraordinary powers in Jammu and Kashmir and the Northeast to enforce law and order in aid of the civilian authority. The army is particularly concerned about proposals floated from the Union home ministry to make it mandatory for soldiers to seek permission from a civilian authority...

CRPF top brass on Wednesday distanced itself from a senior officer's demand that the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) cover be extended to the paramilitary force to tackle the Maoist scourge. D K Pandey, a CRPF inspector-general (IG) posted in Ranchi and in-charge of anti-Maoist operations for the central force in Jharkhand, had made the pitch, which is seen to be his personal view. Speaking to TOI, CRPF director-general K Vijay...