Adviser says government has accepted 37 of 38 JAAC requests, with refugee seats remaining only unresolved issue
Advisor to the Prime Minister on Political Affairs, Rana Sanaullah. Photo: X/File
Adviser to the Prime Minister on Political and Public Affairs, Rana Sanaullah, on Wednesday said that some elements were seeking to create instability in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) ahead of the upcoming elections despite repeated offers of dialogue and negotiations by the government.
Replying to a point raised by the Leader of Opposition in the Senate, Sanaullah said the government had accepted 37 of the 38 demands raised by the Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC), adding that the only outstanding issue was the refugee seats in the AJK Legislative Assembly, which could not be abolished through executive orders.
The advisor said Pakistan would continue to support the cause of Kashmir and the rights of the Kashmiri people, adding that peace and stability in AJK would be maintained in accordance with law.
Last week, the AJK government banned JAAC, accusing it of being involved in terrorism, promoting hatred and creating anarchy in the state. The ban follows the committee’s call for protests on June 9. The organization has previously spearheaded mass protests demanding economic aid and political rights, with some protests ending in violence and deaths during clashes with law enforcement in May 2024 and September 2025.
Read: Reward of 10 million rupees announced for arrest of four JAAC leaders
Sanaullah, in today’s Senate session, said the action committee was formed in 2023 with demands relating to electricity tariff and wheat subsidy, adding that the government had already met the key demands of the committee by providing electricity at Rs 4 per unit, subsidized wheat and a relief package of Rs 23 billion for the region.
Briefing the Senate about the negotiations with the commission, the adviser said the government had been in contact with the commission for several months and through negotiations had reached decisions on most of its demands, he added.
“One of the demands was the removal of 12 refugee seats and that those elected to these seats should neither be appointed as ministers nor given quotas in government jobs,” he said.
Sanaullah argued that if refugee representation in AJK was abolished, the movement behind the demand would end, while noting that Shaheed Maqbool Bhat was a refugee.
He said a Rs23 billion package was approved following discussions with protesters, while a written agreement was later signed after negotiations on 37 of the committee’s 38 demands.
The advisor said the only unresolved issue was refugee seats in the AJK Legislative Assembly.
“These seats represented displaced families from Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) and could not be abolished through executive orders,” he said.
Ranasanaullah said the government had proposed several options, including cross-party consultations, constitutional review, parliamentary review and legal forums, but the proposals were rejected.
He added that all political parties in AJK, the AJK Legislative Assembly and other constitutional forums had supported the position that refugee representation should remain part of the constitutional framework.
Read also: AJK Police says 3 JAAC members killed in Rawalakot clashes, several injured
The advisor further said that the action committee was aware that the elections would be held before August 4 and alleged that its aim was to prevent the electoral process from taking place.
Tarar supports maintaining AJK refugee seats
Meanwhile, Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar defended the retention of refugee seats in the AJK Legislative Assembly, saying they were linked to the Kashmir cause, and urged the opposition to begin consultations with the government on the appointment of the chief election commissioner.
Speaking in the National Assembly, Tarar said the action committee had demanded removal of 12 refugee seats in the AJK Legislative Assembly. He said an all-party conference held in Kashmir had agreed that any constitutional amendment should be decided by the assembly.
He argued that refugee sieges continued to exist because of their connection with the Kashmir cause. He said a reference had been sent to the Supreme Court, while the AJK High Court had directed the next assembly to decide the issue.
The minister also claimed that recent developments were influenced by external factors, saying audio recordings had surfaced indicating who was behind these events. He said India could not tolerate Pakistan’s response.
Background
The recent unrest and deadly clashes in certain areas, notably in Rawalakot, where the newly banned JAAC had organized a sit-in in front of the Rawalakot Combined Military Hospital. AJK police say armed JAAC members opened fire on security forces deployed during a planned attack, leaving four people dead and around 20 injured. The JAAC, however, disputes this version, saying that security forces used tear gas and fired shells towards the hospital.
According to the AJK police, three individuals linked to the JAAC and four law enforcement personnel were killed during Sunday’s protests. The JAAC, however, said in a statement on
Sunday’s clash came as the AJK government and JAAC witnessed a face-off, with the election date for AJK announced for July 27.
The 53-member AJK Legislative Assembly has 12 seats reserved for Kashmiri refugees, people who fled Indian-controlled Kashmir in 1947 and 1965 and are now scattered across Pakistan. Six seats represent refugees from the Jammu division (~434,000 people) and six from the Kashmir Valley (~30,000 people) – an already lopsided arrangement that many see as unfair.
The region experienced one of its most turbulent periods in October last year, when JAAC-led protests erupted demanding constitutional and governance reforms. At least nine people, including three police officers, were killed during the unrest.
The JAAC, which organized the protests and strike, had presented a broad charter of demands, including an end to the privileges enjoyed by the ruling elite, the removal of 12 assembly seats reserved for refugees and the abolition of the quota system.
Two days after the violence, the government and the JAAC reached an agreement on 12 basic points and 13 additional points. Under the agreement, both sides agreed to constitute a high-level committee to look into the issue of refugee seats in the AJK Legislative Assembly.
Learn more: Four policemen martyred, over 20 injured in Rawalakot shooting: AJK Police
The unrest also sparked political upheaval in the region. The PPP then moved a no-confidence resolution against the then Prime Minister Chaudhry Anwarul Haq, with the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz joining the effort. Haq, elected in April 2023 with 48 votes, chose to face the vote rather than resign.
On 17 November, Rathore received 36 votes in the elections and became the 16th Prime Minister of Azad Jammu and Kashmir.
With elections approaching and the refugee seat issue still unresolved, the AJK government has convened an All Party Conference (APC) in Muzaffarabad to reach a consensus. Almost all major parties were present – except the PTI and JAAC, which boycotted it.
The JAAC’s position is that the government had already rejected its written proposals submitted on May 30 and therefore there would be no point in attending. He had proposed either maintaining token representation of refugees until the Kashmir conflict is finally resolved or replacing the 12 seats in the Assembly with 4 seats in the AJK Council – a body chaired by the Prime Minister, which he said would better preserve the political dimension of the Kashmir cause.
The APC rejected any changes outside the constitutional and legislative framework, saying only the elected assembly could change the distribution of refugee seats. The JAAC called the resolution “a page and a half of utterly trivial lines” and accused participants of coming together to serve their own interests rather than those of the public.
