UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — AFSPA extended in parts of Arunachal, Manipur, Nagaland

Q1. Under the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958, previous sanction of which one of the following is required before a prosecution, suit or other legal proceeding is instituted against a person for anything done in exercise of the powers conferred by the Act?

  • A. The Governor of the State within which the act complained of was done
  • B. The High Court exercising territorial jurisdiction over the disturbed area
  • C. The Central Government
  • D. The Judge Advocate General's Department of the Indian Army

Q2. Consider the following authorities: 1. The Governor of a State 2. The Administrator of a Union territory 3. The Central Government 4. The Director General of Police of the State concerned Which of the above is/are correctly identified as competent, by notification in the Official Gazette, to declare an area to be a 'disturbed area' under Section 3 of the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958?

  1. The Governor of a State
  2. The Administrator of a Union territory
  3. The Central Government
  4. The Director General of Police of the State concerned
  • A. 1, 2 and 3
  • B. 1 and 3 only
  • C. 2 and 4
  • D. 1, 2, 3 and 4

Q3. Consider the following statements regarding the declaration of a 'disturbed area' under the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958: 1. Section 3 in its present form was substituted by an amendment to the Act made in 1972. 2. The declaration has to be made by notification in the Official Gazette. 3. A declaration once issued continues in force until it is annulled by a resolution of Parliament. 4. The power of the Central Government to make the declaration exists alongside, and not in substitution of, that of the Governor or Administrator. Which of the statements given above is NOT correct?

  1. Section 3 in its present form was substituted by an amendment to the Act made in 1972.
  2. The declaration has to be made by notification in the Official Gazette.
  3. A declaration once issued continues in force until it is annulled by a resolution of Parliament.
  4. The power of the Central Government to make the declaration exists alongside, and not in substitution of, that of the Governor or Administrator.
  • A. 1 only
  • B. 3 only
  • C. 2 and 4
  • D. 1 and 3

Q4. The latest six-monthly notifications of the Union Home Ministry continue to describe specified parts of Manipur, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh as 'disturbed areas'. Under the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958, such an area is one which —

  • A. has been brought under President's Rule on the ground of failure of the constitutional machinery in the State
  • B. has been declared by notification to be in a condition requiring the use of armed forces in aid of the civil power
  • C. has been placed under the operational command of the Army after the State police force there is formally disbanded
  • D. has been notified as requiring the deployment of central forces for the peaceful conduct of elections

Q5. In the areas kept under the 'disturbed area' declaration by the latest Home Ministry extension, the special powers of search, arrest without warrant and use of force under the Act are exercisable by the Army and by which one of the following?

  • A. The armed police battalions raised and controlled by the State Governments concerned
  • B. The Special Protection Group functioning under the Cabinet Secretariat
  • C. The Central Armed Police Forces deployed in those areas
  • D. The Railway Protection Force functioning under the Ministry of Railways

Q6. Consider the following statements about the operation of AFSPA in Manipur: 1. The Act's provisions were withdrawn from the Imphal municipal area in 2004. 2. Between April 2022 and April 2023 the State Government withdrew the Act from the valley police station areas, citing an improved security situation. 3. The Act was reimposed in November 2024 in the limits of six police stations spread over five districts. 4. This November 2024 reimposition came after President's Rule in the State had been revoked. Which of the statements given above is NOT correct?

  1. The Act's provisions were withdrawn from the Imphal municipal area in 2004.
  2. Between April 2022 and April 2023 the State Government withdrew the Act from the valley police station areas, citing an improved security situation.
  3. The Act was reimposed in November 2024 in the limits of six police stations spread over five districts.
  4. This November 2024 reimposition came after President's Rule in the State had been revoked.
  • A. 1 only
  • B. 2 and 3
  • C. 1 and 3
  • D. 4 only

Q7. In the context of Manipur, the revocation of President's Rule notified on 4 February 2026 meant that —

  • A. the State Legislative Assembly stood dissolved and fresh elections were simultaneously ordered
  • B. the AFSPA notifications then in force in the State stood automatically withdrawn along with it
  • C. the Governor of the State ceased to hold office and a fresh appointment was made for the State
  • D. a Council of Ministers headed by a newly elected Chief Minister resumed office in the State

Q8. When the Government states that AFSPA has been 'completely withdrawn' from a particular North Eastern State, it means that —

  • A. the State has been taken out of the list of States to which the Act extends, by an amendment of the Act
  • B. no area of the State remains notified as a disturbed area, though the State stays within the Act's extent
  • C. the special powers survive there but may be exercised only with the prior concurrence of the State Government
  • D. the Act stands repealed in relation to that State by a notification issued by the President of India

Q9. Among the North Eastern States, which one was the latest to have AFSPA withdrawn completely from its entire territory?

  • A. Mizoram
  • B. Tripura
  • C. Meghalaya
  • D. Assam

Q10. As clarified by the Supreme Court in General Officer Commanding (Army) v. Central Bureau of Investigation, the requirement of 'previous sanction' under AFSPA means that sanction —

  • A. is needed at the stage of taking cognizance of the offence and not for investigating the allegations
  • B. is needed before any investigation into the allegations can even be taken up against the personnel
  • C. is needed equally for court-martial proceedings taken up against the personnel under the Army Act, 1950
  • D. is available for acts done from a personal motive as much as for acts done in discharge of duty

Q11. The Assam Rifles, the Central Armed Police Force most closely associated with counter-insurgency duties in the AFSPA areas of the Northeast, functions under —

  • A. the administrative control of the Ministry of Defence and the operational control of the Ministry of Home Affairs
  • B. the administrative control of the Ministry of Home Affairs and the operational control of the Ministry of Defence
  • C. the administrative as well as the operational control of the Ministry of Home Affairs, as other such forces do
  • D. the administrative control of the Ministry of Home Affairs and the operational control of the State Governments