AJK police say JAAC working under 'specific agenda', accuse protesters of using automatic weapons

Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) police spokesperson Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Khawar Ali Shaukat on Wednesday said the proscribed Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC) was operating under "a specific agenda" aimed at destabilising the region, accusing protesters of firing automatic weapons at security personnel from fortified positions inside buildings. The statement came after clashes between law enforcement personnel and protesters in Rawalakot during the first phase of the AJK elections in Mirpur Division two days earlier, with reports of multiple deaths and injuries circulating on social media. Several videos circulating online showed scenes of unrest, with claims of violence and casualties, though the details could not be independently verified.

Both security forces and the banned Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC) claimed the loss of lives on both sides. Speaking at a press briefing in Rawalakot today, SSP Shaukat said the clashes had exposed the "false narrative" on social media portraying the movement as peaceful. "This is not a peaceful movement; it has become an armed group." According to Shaukat, armed groups attacked security personnel deployed across different parts of Rawalakot to maintain law and order, prompting police to launch operations.

He said state institutions had "always tried to exercise restraint," but added that when "armed groups attack police and law enforcement agencies, it becomes our constitutional and legal responsibility to take action in accordance with the law." Describing the violence over the past two days, the AJK police spokesperson said individuals had taken positions inside buildings before opening fire on security forces with what he described as modern weapons. "You have seen how, over the last two days, they occupied buildings, established positions and opened fire on security forces and police personnel using modern weapons," he said. Shaukat said the attacks resulted in the death of one Rangers official while approximately 15 police and other law enforcement personnel sustained injuries during the clashes.

He said that the JAAC, which he said had presented itself as leading a peaceful movement, was instead operating under "a specific agenda" aimed at destabilising the region. "Its objective is to destroy peace in Azad Kashmir, disturb Kashmir's social fabric and undermine the atmosphere of harmony," he …