- AJK govt directs police chiefs to complete probes.
- Leader announces dissociation from banned outfit.
- State minister says situation in AJK under control.
The Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) government has initiated formal legal proceedings against banned Jammu Kashmir Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC) leaders Shaukat Nawaz Mir and Khawaja Mehran Arshad over allegations of sedition and anti-state activities.
Muzaffarabad Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) has been tasked with completing investigations against Mir under Section 124-A of the AJK Penal Code, while Mirpur SSP will probe allegations against Arshad.
After reviewing available material, the AJK Home Department said that the allegations warranted further investigation under the law.
According to the Home Department, investigations have been ordered into alleged criminal speeches, writings, publications and electronic communications.
The department further instructed relevant district police chiefs to complete investigations under Section 196 of the Code of Criminal Procedure and submit challans before the relevant courts.
The AJK government declared the JAAC a proscribed organisation under anti-terrorism laws on June 5, saying the group was “engaged in terrorism, acting in a manner prejudicial to the peace and security of the State”.
On Monday, AJK police said that deliberate firing by members of the banned outfit left four law enforcement personnel martyred and more than 20 police and security officials injured in Rawalakot.
The fresh directives from the AJK Home Department follow an alleged leaked audio recording involving Mir and Arshad and violent incidents reported in Rawalakot.
Separately, the AJK Home Department issued a list of four wanted individuals linked to the banned JAAC.
The notification named Mir, Arshad, Umar Nazir Kashmiri and Sardar Aman Khan.
The notification announced a reward of Rs10 million for information leading to the arrest of the wanted individuals, saying the identity of informants would remain confidential.
The AJK IGP was directed to ensure immediate implementation of the reward scheme.
Meanwhile, Syed Faisal Gilani, who was a member of the JAAC, announced his dissociation from the banned organisation, condemning the violent attacks carried out in Rawalakot.
Separately, Minister of State for Interior Talal Chaudhry said that the situation in AJK was under control and that authorities were ensuring the protection of lives and property.
The banned organisation is being exposed, he told journalists in Islamabad, saying that the federal government had begun implementing the banned JAAC’s demands in a sincere manner.
Despite progress on those demands, the developments suggested that JAAC’s “objective is something else”, Chaudhry added.
He also maintained that conditions across AJK, including in Rawalakot, were normal and under control.
Responding to a question about reported deaths during the recent protests, the state minister said that a detailed press release would be issued regarding the death toll.
Asif warns state will implement law with full force
Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said that taking differences and disputed issues to the public remained the essence of democratic thinking, adding that those seeking to impose their views through violence appeared to be “pursuing objectives”.
“At a time when elections are near, taking contentious issues to the court of public opinion is a truly democratic approach,” he wrote in a post on X.
The defence minister condemned the killing of police and security personnel and the desecration of bodies, saying such actions indicated that those involved did not want to accept the public’s verdict.
Asif warned that the state would implement the law with full force if any group attempted to enforce an anti-state agenda through violence and armed mobs.
He vowed that the state would ensure that the people of Kashmir were given the opportunity to exercise their right to vote and express their opinion freely.
