TTAP announces relief mission to AJK

The opposition alliance Tehreek Tahaffuz-e-Ayeen Pakistan (TTAP) on Saturday announced that its leadership would travel to Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) on Monday (tomorrow) with relief supplies, while accusing the government of suppressing dissent and mishandling the situation in the region.

Addressing a news conference, TTAP spokesperson Akhunzada Hussain Yousafzai said a peaceful sit-in was continuing in Rawalakot, adding that "80 people had been killed according to verified information".

He said leaders of the Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC) had either been killed or had bounties placed on their heads.

The region witnessed one of its most turbulent periods in October last year when protests led by the JAAC erupted over demands for constitutional and governance reforms. At least nine people, including three policemen, were killed during the unrest.

The JAAC, which organised the protests and strike, had presented a wide-ranging charter of demands, including an end to the privileges enjoyed by the ruling elite, the abolition of 12 assembly seats reserved for refugees, and the scrapping of the quota system.

Two days after the violence, the government and the JAAC reached an agreement covering 12 core and 13 additional points. Under the accord, both sides agreed to constitute a high-level committee to examine the issue of refugee seats in the AJK Legislative Assembly. The matter is at a deadlock at the moment, with the JAAC calling for the abolition of the seats while the government rejects the demand.

Yousafzai accused the government of suppressing dissent, arguing that attempts to silence opposing voices in Kashmir had led to the emergence of JAAC. He maintained that all of the committee's demands could be addressed through dialogue.