Sharmila walks free, vows to continue fast

Imphal: A teary-eyed rights activist Irom Sharmila, who has been on a hunger strike for 14 years, today walked free from a make-shift prison here vowing to continue her fight for repeal of the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act. Without the familiar nasal drip, a part of the abiding symbol of her struggle, frail-looking Sharmla, 41, was escorted out of the government hospital at Porompat where a room was converted into a jail. On Tuesday, a sessions court here ordered her release and acquitted her of the charge of attempting to commit suicide by refusing food.