On Friday, the Pakistani rangers, a paramilitary army under the command of the Pakistani army, launched fire in Muzaffarabad, which is located in Pakistan’s administered Azad Kashmir (AJK), and killed at least four Pakistani nationals who were protesting against the rising prices and exploitation, which could exacerbate the already volatile situation in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).
The event happened on the same day when Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif authorized the immediate release of Rs. 23 billion for PoK (Pakistan-occupied Kashmir) after an important and emergency meeting in the nation’s capital on how they can evaluate the region’s violent confrontations over the weekend.
Who is Protesting in Pok and Why Violence erupted in the region?
On May 10, the Jammu and Kashmir Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC) called for a lockdown and a jam-strike in the Muzaffarabad region of the PoK (Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir). The group represents the region’s local traders, and they called the traders and the rest of the people of the region to start demonstrating a protest against the Pakistani government for the rising inflation and wanting tax-free energy, i.e., electricity from the Mangla Dam.
However, they are also protesting to lower the prices of wheat, which is the staple diet for the region, and they also want the government to end the privileges and opportunities enjoyed by the elite class of the region. Protests were also held in different Pok regions like Samahni, Sehansa, Mirpur, Rawalakot, Khuiratta, Tattapani, and Hattian Bala.
The Clashes between Pakistani Police and JAAC Activists
On May 8 and 9, the Pakistani police and authorities arrested over 70 JAAC (Jammu and Kashmir Joint Awami Action Committee) members during their raids in Muzaffarabad, and the arrests led to a complete shutdown and a demonstration for a strike for the whole weekend.
On May 11, the JAAC activists shouted a call for ‘Azadi’ and promoted a long walk towards Muzaffarabad. However, their long erupted halfway after the Pakistani police tried to slow down the strike by firing AK-47s in the sky and using teargas, which affected a lot of the people in their homes and mosques after demonstrators replied with pelting stones towards the authorities. In many posters, Pakistani people demanded a union with India to solve their crisis.
“Pakistan se lain ge Azadi”
Slogans being chanted by kashmiris in #pok in front of pakistan army . They are losing kashmir while conquering their own people in pakistan and stealing mandate.#pok#kashmir #protest pic.twitter.com/uVlFYHU97m— Ahmad Farhad (@AhmadFarhadReal) May 11, 2024
Many videos and images emerged on social media where it can be seen that the Pakistan police use batons to beat some people from the crowds. The Pakistani army and the police was deployed in the region also to protect the Chinese representatives and the projects related to the China–Pakistan Economic Corridor.
The Fatalities from the Clash
Ayub Mirza, the PoK activists said to the local media that the Pakistani army fired many bullets towards the unarmed crowd and two people were reported dead from the continued firing by the Pakistani army.
However according to the Pakistani newspaper The Dawn, one police official died in the clash between the Pakistani army and the people while 90 others were injured in the situation. Kamran Ali, the Senior Superintendent of the Mirpur police stated that ‘Sub-inspector Adnan Qureshi succumbed to a gunshot wound in the chest in the town of Islamgarh, where he was deployed to stop a rally for Muzaffarabad under the banner of the Jammu Kashmir Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC).’
Pok’s Call for Indian government
As the deadly clash between the Pakistani authorities and the JAAC activists is still going on, the traders are told to keep their shops’s shutters down until the conflict is solved. Anwarul Haq, the Prime Minister of PoK, told the activists and the people not to promote violence in the region, while Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said on his official X page that he is deeply concerned about the situation in PoK, and he requested the general public to calm down as he is already trying to solve the situation with the rest of the members of the Cabinet.
On the other hand, the PoK activist Ayub Mirza demanded and requested the Indian government to intervene in this situation and solve their crisis as their people are fighting the Pakistani government and the authorities, and he ended the statement by saying that the situation is getting out of their hands and if the Indian government does not intervene, their golden chance to free PoJK and Gilgit-Baltistan will go away from their hands.
This comes shortly after Amit Shah, the Union Home Minister of India in a recent rally in Telangana further asserted the claim that ‘PoK belongs to India and India will take it.’
Similar Situation in 2023
It is not the first time this type of situation has happened in this region; it took place last year as well.
The last time it took place was in Rawalakot, which is the capital of the Poonch district in Azad Kashmir (AJK), During the conflict, people tore down thousands of electricity bills, and the demand was similar: to reduce the high cost of electricity and the price of wheat flour.
