PaJK Agitation Enters New Phase, October 4 Deadline Looms

RAWALAKOT: The confrontation between the Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC) and the government in Pakistan-administered Jammu and Kashmir has entered a new phase.

The protest leadership is asking people to stock two months of rations ahead of a major announcement after October 4, even as the administration signals a tougher approach towards renewed agitation.

In a declaration issued from Rawalakot on Monday, the JAAC asked traders to keep their shops open from September 28 to October 3 and urged residents to use the six days to prepare themselves for the next phase of the movement.

The Committee advised families to arrange food and essential supplies sufficient for two months, an unusual appeal indicating that its leadership is preparing for the possibility of a prolonged shutdown or disruption.

It said an "extremely important call" would be issued after October 4 and asked people to make full preparations before then.

The JAAC did not specify the nature of the proposed action. However, there is growing expectation within protest circles that the next phase could include a territory-wide shut down and closure of entry points connecting Pakistan-administered Kashmir with Pakistan.

The Committee said it would not abandon what it described as the people's fundamental rights and would continue its struggle until its demands were addressed.

The declaration has once again brought Rawalakot to the centre of the confrontation. A sit-in here has continued for several weeks and has become one of the principal organisational centres of the movement.

October 4 has particular significance in the dispute.

It marks the period when the government and the Action Committee reached an agreement last year after days of protests and confrontation. Protest leaders have repeatedly maintained that several provisions of that agreement remain unimplemented.

The government disputes this assertion and says considerable progress has been made on legitimate and practicable demands, particularly those relating to public welfare.

The disagreement over implementation has remained at the heart of the continuing agitation despite elections and the installation of a new government.

While the streets remained relatively quiet on September 26 and 27, the latest developments suggest the lull may represent a period of preparation rather than an end to the confrontation.

Government Response

In Muzaffarabad, Chief Secretary Khushhal Khan and Inspector General of Police Liaquat Ali Malik held a joint press conference on September 28, insisting that the writ of the government had been restored and would be maintained.

Khan said the newly elected government and President had taken office, markets had reopened and normal life had returned across the territory.

But much of the press conference was devoted to revisiting the violence that accompanied the previous phase of protests.

The Chief Secretary said that between September 25 and October 4 last year, what he described as "armed groups and miscreant elements" had carried out violent activities under the cover of public demands.

He cited attacks on law-enforcement personnel in several districts, particularly the Chamyati incident in the Dhirkot area.

IGP Liaquat Malik identified three policemen killed in the incident as Constable Tahir Rafiq, Constable Muhammad Jameel and Head Constable Muhammad Rashid.

Police claimed that around 409 personnel were injured during the unrest, including some who suffered gunshot wounds and others injured after being struck with sticks.

Malik also alleged that the bodies of policemen were desecrated after their deaths and government vehicles were damaged. He said video footage of some incidents was available and claimed some of it had been obtained from social-media platforms associated with the protesters.

These are official claims and could not be independently verified.

The police chief said 69 First Information Reports had been registered in connection with last year's violence.

According to the administration, action on those cases was suspended for a period to reduce tensions and give peace a chance.

Chief Secretary Khan said the government subsequently attempted to implement the agreement reached with the protesters and gave priority to demands related to public welfare.

The administration also considered setting up commissions to investigate some of the outstanding cases, he said.

However, police maintain that law-enforcement personnel subsequently faced violence again.

The IGP said 122 people had so far been arrested in cases relating to the Chamyati violence. He said efforts would continue to identify people allegedly involved in killing or injuring police personnel and damaging public property.

Malik defended the conduct of the security forces, saying police and other agencies had followed a policy of using minimum force.

He claimed that more than 1,000 people, including police and personnel of other law-enforcement agencies, were injured during protest-related violence.

He said the responsibility of the police was to maintain law and order within the framework of the law and protect the lives, property and dignity of citizens.

The police chief also paid tribute to personnel killed in Chamyati, Rawalakot and other areas during the unrest.

JAAC Account

The JAAC presents a sharply different account of the movement.

It describes the agitation as a struggle for basic public rights rather than a law-and-order challenge and maintains that its demands extend beyond routine administrative matters.

The movement initially drew much of its support from grievances over electricity tariffs, subsidised wheat and other economic issues, but its agenda has since widened to encompass governance, political representation, employment, education, healthcare and implementation of previous agreements.

JAAC-linked social-media accounts have also accused the authorities of continuing pressure on activists and their families.

Posts circulating in recent days have referred to flag marches by police and security forces in Rawalakot and surrounding areas, which movement supporters described as attempts to create fear among residents.

Other posts have carried messages from relatives of people killed in earlier clashes.

In one video message circulated by supporters of the movement, Samira Kiyani alleged that authorities had placed her family under pressure, detained her elderly father and questioned women and children during a raid.

These allegations could not be independently verified.

The competing claims underline the widening gap between the government and the protest leadership.

For the administration, the confrontation is increasingly framed around law and order, attacks on police, damage to state property and the need to maintain government authority.

For the JAAC, the dispute remains a political struggle arising from unfulfilled agreements and unresolved economic and governance grievances.

The completion of the political transition has not bridged that divide.

Elections have been held, a new government installed, and Dr Muhammad Najeeb Naqi Khan elected President on September 24. The administration points to these developments as evidence that constitutional and political normalcy has returned.

But the continuing Rawalakot sit-in and preparations for another major protest call suggest that the movement has retained its organisational capacity despite arrests and months of confrontation.