AJK warns banned JAAC against student march

MUZAFFARABAD:

The Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) government on Sunday warned that the proscribed Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC) would be held responsible for any untoward incident involving students during its planned protests.

Addressing a joint press conference, AJK government spokesperson Chaudhry Guftar Hussain and AJK Police spokesperson Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Irfan Masood Kashfi said that the outlawed group had called on students to participate in demonstrations on July 14 and 15 and planned a march by students to Muzaffarabad on July 15.

They said that under the October 4, 2025 agreement, all 38 demands of the now-proscribed JAAC had been accepted. However, the committee later deviated from the demands relating to fundamental rights and pursued anti-state objectives, leading to its proscription under the law.

The government spokesperson said the 36-day sit-in had severely disrupted the supply of food, medicines and other essential commodities in the Poonch Division. He added blockades on highways and link roads had paralysed public movement and created shortages of essential items in several areas.

DIG Kashfi said the government had both a constitutional and moral obligation to restore blocked roads but alleged that every attempt to reopen them had been met with resistance and gunfire from JAAC members. He claimed that road-clearing teams in Shujaabad came under heavy fire from adjoining areas and nearby forests, injuring law enforcement personnel.

In Arja-Jhandala, he said, a bulldozer operator was injured after the machine came under fire while clearing a blocked road, while security personnel escorting the injured operator were also targeted. He added that attacks on trucks carrying food supplies, incidents of looting and the siphoning of diesel did not reflect a peaceful protest.

The government spokesperson accused that the banned JAAC of planning to use women and children as human shields by placing them in front of law enforcement personnel, keeping them at the protest against their will and sending them forward carrying copies of the Holy Quran and white flags.

He termed such plans condemnable, saying the Holy Quran should not be used in any confrontation or protest as it was contrary to its sanctity and Islamic teachings. He also described incitement, attacks on law enforcement agencies and damage to public property as unacceptable.

The spokespersons warned that the banned JAAC would be held responsible for any untoward incidents arising from the ongoing protests, particularly any harm caused to students participating in the demonstrations.

They reiterated that maintaining the rule of law and providing relief to citizens remained the government's constitutional responsibility. They also reaffirmed that the upcoming AJK Legislative Assembly elections would be held according to the announced schedule, with no possibility of postponement or changes, adding that all administrative and security arrangements had been finalised to ensure free, fair, transparent and peaceful elections.

Appealing to the public, the spokespersons urged AJK residents to participate responsibly in the democratic process by exercising their right to vote and rejecting inflammatory propaganda, rumours and divisive narratives.

They said preserving peace, stability and the rule of law was a shared responsibility and called on people to remain vigilant against misleading campaigns aimed at damaging the peaceful image of AJK. They added that the AJK government and other state institutions would continue to safeguard peace, uphold the rule of law and protect the public interest at all costs.