Recently, a former minister Dr Najeeb Naqi from the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) in Pakistan-administered Jammu and Kashmir (PaJK) hailed the 13th Amendment to the region’s Interim Constitution, Act 74.
He called it “a major and genuine first step toward making the Azad government a truly democratic and empowered institution.” However, observers believe the claim exaggerates the truth and disregards the region’s long, convoluted, and often manipulated constitutional history.
A closer look reveals how every promise of autonomy has been systematically rolled back.
The story begins on October 24, 1947, when a revolutionary provisional government of the state of Jammu and Kashmir was declared in Tararkhel, alongside a rebellion against the Dogra Maharaja. The proclamation described the new government as the true voice of the people, aiming to free the state from autocratic Dogra rule.
It declared victory of the people over the armed forces of the ruler and asserted that the interim cabinet would include Muslims, Hindus, and Sikhs. Its immediate goal was to restore governance until the people could elect a democratic assembly.
Although no non-Muslims were actually included in the first cabinet, the government functioned under this proclamation for nearly 18 months. During this time, President Sardar Muhammad Ibrahim even travelled to the United Nations Security Council, but due to Mahatma Gandhi’s assassination, the session was postponed, and he couldn’t present his case.
In 1948, political friction emerged between Sardar Ibrahim and Chaudhry Ghulam Abbas, who had arrived from Pakistan. Seizing the opportunity, Pakistan’s then Minister without Portfolio initiated the Karachi Agreement in April 1949. Under this agreement, the Azad Jammu and Kashmir government was stripped of significant authority, limited to local administration and offering advice.
Meanwhile, powers related to defence, foreign policy, rehabilitation of refugees, communications, and the administration of Gilgit-Baltistan were transferred to the Government of Pakistan. Even certain responsibilities on the Kashmir issue were handed to the All Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference.
This agreement not only disempowered PaJK but also formally split the region into two parts: Azad Jammu and Kashmir and the Northern Areas (later Gilgit-Baltistan). The Ministry without Portfolio was renamed the Ministry of Kashmir Affairs and Northern Areas, and it assumed sweeping control, including changing governments and appointing the PaJK president. A popular movement demanding voting rights was crushed by Pakistani security forces—a struggle extensively documented in my book "Azadi ke Baad".
Right to Vote
Despite opposition from Abbas and Sardar Abdul Qayyum Khan, the 1955 Kashmir Conference in Karachi acknowledged PaJK citizens’ right to vote, but implementation was delayed until 1961.
Under Pakistan’s Basic Democracies system introduced by Ayub Khan, elections were finally held. Before the polls, a legal measure titled the Azad Jammu and Kashmir Elective Bodies and Public Offices Disqualification Act 1960 was used to disqualify both Sardar Ibrahim and Colonel Sher Ahmed Khan.
Only six candidates, including Sardar Abdul Qayyum and K H Khurshid, contested the elections. Khurshid emerged victorious and became the president. During his presidency, Sheikh Abdullah visited Pakistan and was scheduled to visit Muzaffarabad, but returned to India upon learning of Nehru’s death. He never returned to Pakistan again.
Khurshid's administration tried to gain recognition for PaJK as the representative government of Jammu and Kashmir but failed. Soon after Abdullah’s visit, Khurshid’s government was dissolved in August 1964, and the 1964 Act was enforced, appointing Khan Abdul Hameed Khan as president and abolishing the representation of Kashmiri refugees living in Pakistan.
After the 1965 war, no new elections were held. Instead, the term of the 1961 Basic Democracy members was extended. When this sparked protests from PaJK. Khurshid and Sardar Ibrahim, President Abdul Hameed Khan, responded in 1968 by promulgating the 1968 Act. This Act restored refugee representation and introduced a nominated State Council, which then re-elected Abdul Hameed Khan as president.
Sardar Ibrahim, K H Khurshid and Sardar Abdul Qayyum began to feel excluded. With other senior leaders—Chaudhry Ghulam Abbas (d.1967), Raja Haider Khan, and Mirwaiz Yusuf Shah (d.1968)—having passed away, the trio launched state-wide protests in December 1968 under the banner Ittehad-e-Salasa (Triumvirate Alliance). Their joint declaration echoed the 1947 proclamation and demanded the unification of PaJK and Gilgit-Baltistan into a single administrative unit.
In October 1969, the government responded by removing Abdul Hameed Khan and appointing Brigadier Qazi Abdul Rehman as president. A new constitutional framework—Act 1970—was introduced, ending the Kashmir Affairs Ministry’s interference. This presidential system provided for the direct election of the president and the formation of a legislative assembly. The Act emphasised that the final status of Jammu and Kashmir was subject to a free and fair plebiscite under UN supervision.
The president could appoint advisers, judges, cabinet members, the Public Service Commission chairman, the election commissioner, and even an adviser on plebiscite matters. In the absence of an assembly, the president had the authority to pass temporary laws and approve the budget.
The 25-member legislative assembly included 24 elected members and one reserved seat for women. The assembly could pass laws, amend the constitution with a two-thirds majority, and even remove the president. Likewise, the president could dissolve the assembly, triggering fresh elections within four months.
All officeholders—president, speaker, ministers, and legislators—were required to pledge loyalty to Pakistan and the idea of Kashmir’s accession to Pakistan. In October 1970, the first adult franchise elections were held. Sardar Abdul Qayyum became the first elected president.
Following the 1971 breakup of Pakistan, the presidential system lost favour. In 1973, Pakistan adopted a new parliamentary constitution. Zulfikar Ali Bhutto visited PaJK multiple times and persuaded local politicians to accept a parliamentary model. On August 24, 1974, Act 74—drafted by Hafeez Pirzada—was adopted.
While the Act was celebrated for introducing a parliamentary system, it significantly diluted the autonomy provided under the 1970 Act. It established the Jammu and Kashmir Council, effectively placing legislative authority in the hands of the federal government. Half of its members were Pakistani officials; the rest were elected from PaJK. The Pakistani Prime Minister was the council’s head, while actual control lay with a joint secretary in the Ministry of Kashmir Affairs.
Powers Withdrawn
Thus, just four years after gaining legislative autonomy, PaJK saw its powers withdrawn. The region reverted to the pre-1970 status, and federal dominance resumed. Yet no PaJK politician opposed this rollback.
Sardar Ibrahim, K H Khurshid, and even Sardar Abdul Qayyum—who was president at the time—endorsed the move without resistance. Justice Abdul Majeed Malik later wrote that Khurshid had told him they had prevented Azad Kashmir from becoming a full province and had moderated presidential excesses through a parliamentary system.
The first elections under Act 74 were held in 1975. Khan Abdul Hameed Khan became Prime Minister, and Sardar Ibrahim returned as President. Although Act 74 has undergone many amendments since, the PML-N claims that the 13th Amendment, passed under its government, has made the PAJK Assembly powerful.
In truth, even after this amendment, the PaJK government remains toothless. Out of 54 legislative subjects, 32 remain exclusively under Pakistan’s control. The remaining 22 can only be legislated upon with Islamabad’s approval.
The region’s natural resources cannot be used without federal consent. Appointments of high court judges, the chief election commissioner, and other key officials are controlled by Pakistan. Notably, the amendment also constitutionally protected the seats of refugees living in Pakistan, which were not part of the original Act 74.
To call the 13th Amendment a step toward empowerment is misleading. It amounts to little more than political theatre—a continuation of the long tradition of denying real autonomy while maintaining the appearance of self-governance.
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