MUZAFFARABAD:
The Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) government has accused the banned Joint Awami Action Committee (Jaac) of causing financial losses of Rs 15 billion to the state through violent activities and alleged that the group had links with India-backed anti-state elements.
Addressing a press conference alongside AJK Police spokesperson on Monday, Information Secretary Muhammad Rashid Hanif said the banned outfit had inflicted substantial financial loss on the state, putting serious strain on its limited resources.
He said the group had disrupted public order, daily life, businesses and students’ education under the guise of defending human rights.
The allegations come days after authorities said they had uncovered evidence linking protest organizers and foreign handlers to India, accusing them of promoting anti-state narratives and orchestrating unrest through coordinated campaigns.
As background, Hanif said the movement emerged in the early 2020s in response to global inflation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
He said the AJK government immediately responded to public grievances by providing subsidies on wheat and electricity, adding that both these commodities remained cheaper in AJK than anywhere else in Pakistan.
According to the Information Secretary, what began as a public movement was later hijacked by anti-state elements, diverting it from its initial goals towards political motivations before morphing into an unregistered anti-state movement.
He said video evidence had been shared with the media showing Jaac leaders and foreign agents chanting slogans against Pakistan and its armed forces while promoting chaos and anarchy.
Hanif said the group’s activities had gradually intensified, moving from peaceful protests to organized violence targeting state institutions and law enforcement.
Referring to the group’s first sit-in in 2023, he said protesters had crossed peaceful boundaries by attacking government facilities in Dadyal. He said violence escalated during the 2024 sit-in when activists clashed with Islamabad Capital Territory police and desecrated law enforcement uniforms.
He further claimed that the movement was increasingly targeting government officials. According to him, members of the group attempted to assassinate a deputy commissioner in Chamyati and physically assaulted a police commissioner and other officials in Bagh.
He also expressed concern over what he described as the group’s use of women and children as human shields during clashes, calling the practice dangerous and unacceptable.
Hanif claimed there was credible evidence of foreign funding aimed at mobilizing members of the Kashmiri diaspora abroad to fuel unrest in the region.
