Irom Sharmila breaks 16-year-long fast, but not promise to meet mother

Having broken the world’s longest hunger strike yesterday, Manipur’s ‘Iron Lady’ Irom Sharmila is maintaining her resolve not to clip her nails, comb her hair, go to her house and meet her mother till AFSPA is repealed.

On November 5, 2000, when she took a vow to start an indefinite hunger strike till the government repeals AFSPA, which gives armed forces immunity against prosecution for their actions, her protest had multiple dimensions which went beyond not taking food and water.

The toughest one was not to go home and meet her 84-year-old mother Shakhi Devi till achieving her goal of getting AFSPA revoked.

Sharmila has not visited her house at Kongpal Kongkham Leikai, on the edge of Imphal city, even once all these years.

Despite breaking her fast with a dab of honey yesterday, the 44-year-old ‘Satyagrahi’ made it clear that she would not go home till AFSPA is repealed and preferred to stay in an ashram till then.

Her associates said to avoid any emotional outbursts Sharmila had not been meeting her mother during the fasting period.

Elder brother Singhajit said their mother is waiting for the moment of her victory which will come only when AFSPA is repealed.

Although living only few meters away from each other, the duo has met only once in all these years when Shakhi was admitted to Jawaharlal Nehru Hospital, where Sharmila was force-fed through nasal tube and kept under detention by the police for attempt to suicide.