New Delhi

Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has said she has no “grudge” against a group of Army officers who have approached the Supreme Court to present their views on cases relating to the Armed Forces Special Powers Act .

The Defence Minister said the officers have chosen to go to the court as there is a “certain sense of worry” in their minds which she can understand. In an unusual move, around 700 Army officers and soldiers have approached the Supreme Court, requesting it to protect the bonafide action of soldiers under AFSPA, and voicing concerns over the reported move to dilute some provisions of the law which protects the security forces from prosecution without the Centre’s approval.
“Grievance redressal is a right. I will never want to say if you have a grievance, you should not voice it. I will never say that. There are institutional mechanisms available for grievance redressal within the Army, Navy and Air Force. So it is possible for men or officers to have grievance redressal institutionalised within the forces,” she said.

The Supreme Court has been hearing cases relating to alleged extra-judicial killings in Manipur by the security forces. Army Chief General Bipin Rawat disapproved of the move by the serving officers and soldiers to approach the top court in their personal capacity. At the same time, he had said the forces and the defence ministry are steadfastly behind all officers who have conducted operations in J&K and North-East.