Background of JKJAC
Main Objectives of the Committee
Major Protests and Actions (2023–2025)
Public Response & Media Coverage
Government Reaction & Negotiations
Role of Shaukat Nawaz Mir
Impact on Civil Rights in AJK
Conclusion: What Lies Ahead for JKJAC?
Worth reading, detailed
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The most organized movement of civil society in Azad Jammu and Kashmir Jammu Kashmir Joint Public Action Committee
There has been a series of protests in Rawalakot for a long time due to flour smuggling. Here in Azad Kashmir, a 20 kg bag of flour was worth Rs 1550, while in Pakistan the price of this bag had reached Rs 3000. Since Azad Kashmir is connected to Punjab on one side and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on the other, in such a situation, all five fingers of the smugglers went into the ghee and the head went into the frying pan. Anyway, Azad Kashmir is a paradise for flour mafia and even the powerful benefit from this mafia here. This whole matter accelerated when the protected/unprotected categories were introduced in electricity bills and consumers received double electricity bills in August.
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That is, those who used to get an average bill of Rs 8,000 earlier were sent a bill of Rs 15,000. This situation has shaken the entire Azad Kashmir and people have started boycotting the electricity supply. These incidents took place in Rawalakot from May 8, 2023 and in Muzaffarabad and Mirpur from August 15, 2023.
On these issues, a statewide strike was held across Azad Kashmir on August 31, demonstrations were held, arrests were made and as a result, hundreds of people from all over Azad Kashmir gathered in Muzaffarabad on September 17, 2023 and the foundation of the Jammu Kashmir Joint Public Action Committee was laid.
Hundreds of people were arrested during the protests on September 30, 2023, in response to which statewide shutter downs, wheel jams and rallies were held across Azad Jammu and Kashmir on October 5, 2023.
From November 3, 2023, the Azad Jammu and Kashmir government started talks with the Jammu Kashmir Joint Public Action Committee. These talks were held on November 3, November 8, November 9, November 29, November 30, December 7, December 19, December 20 and February 4.
These talks failed despite the issuance of a notification of services on February 4, 2024.
On May 11, 2024, people from all over Azad Kashmir started a long march towards Muzaffarabad in favor of their 10-point charter of demands. On May 13, the government of Pakistan intervened in the whole matter and a 20 kg bag of flour was reduced to Rs 1000, while the price of electricity per unit was fixed at Rs 3 to 6 for domestic use and Rs 10 to 15 for commercial use.
During the long march, a police officer was martyred in Islam garh and 3 protesters in Muzaffarabad.
What happened next
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The government of Pakistan intervened in the two aforementioned cases and provided relief to the people, but the government of Azad Jammu and Kashmir, as usual, benefited from this relief for itself. Prime Minister of Pakistan Shahbaz Sharif immediately provided Rs 23 billion to the government of Azad Kashmir for subsidy on flour, while in the June 2024 budget, a subsidy of Rs 108 billion was provided in the form of tariff differential on electricity. In addition, the government of Pakistan, in the Ministry of Information Technology, gave Rs 8.5 billion to the government of Azad Jammu and Kashmir, which was received in the form of sale of 4G spectrum and license and renewal fees.
Despite receiving so much relief, the government of Azad Jammu and Kashmir, on the one hand, reduced the quality of flour, on the other hand, reduced the allocation of each area, and on the third, allocated Rs 41 billion in the budget for the year 2024-25 for the purchase of wheat. Although the same budget allocated Rs 14 billion in the year 2023-24. The matter of Rs 8.5 billion received for telecommunications is still a mystery as to how that money was spent.
On the other hand, in the matter of electricity, it was decided that the previous arrears of domestic bills would be paid at the new tariff and commercial bills would be charged at Rs 10 to 15 per unit, but both the agreed matters were not implemented and commercial bills above 5 kVA and bills for three-phase meters continued to be issued at the previous rates.
Apart from these matters, the implementation of 8 other points is still pending, on which the government has also issued a notification of services.
To resolve these matters, on September 25, 2024, the Jammu and Kashmir Joint Public Action Committee held a public meeting at Rawalakot and gave the Azad Jammu and Kashmir government a deadline of October 24. After this time passed, the Action Committee held a public meeting in Kotli on October 24 and called for a second long march on January 23, 2025 and gave the government a time of December 31, 2024 to implement the demands.
On October 30, 2024, the Government of Azad Jammu and Kashmir banned all types of gatherings/protests without prior permission in the entire area through the Peaceful Assembly and Public Order Ordinance 2024, while the ordinance clearly stated that only registered organizations will have the right to gather/protest and unregistered organizations or individuals will not be able to organize any kind of gathering/protest. If anyone protests without permission, he will be sentenced to 3 to 7 years in prison. A gathering of more than 15 people will not be able to be held without the permission of the Deputy Commissioner. In case of non-approval of the Deputy Commissioner, the application will go to the Commissioner. The application for protest will be given 7 days in advance. After this ordinance, a series of protests started in Azad Kashmir by various organizations in which hundreds of people were arrested.
Meanwhile, the ordinance was challenged by the Azad Jammu and Kashmir Bar Council and the Supreme Court Bar in the High Court and later the Supreme Court, where the ordinance was temporarily suspended. For the complete repeal of the ordinance and the release of the arrested, the Jammu and Kashmir Joint Public Action Committee called for a statewide shutter-down and wheel jam on December 5, which continued on December 6. On December 7, the Action Committee called for the closure of entry points and all routes connecting Azad Jammu and Kashmir with Pakistan were closed. The public gathered at the point connecting Muzaffarabad with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa at Berar Kot, while the second major entry point was closed at Kohala, where people from Poonch gathered in thousands. On December 8, the Azad Jammu and Kashmir government not only released the arrested but also withdrew the ordinance. During this, it was decided that the government would settle the issue of electricity tariffs and settle all the cases filed against the members of the Action Committee between May 2023 and December 2024 within 90 days. In addition, the meter connections of the houses that came within the limits of the dam during the Mangla Dam raising will be disconnected and the bills issued in the names of the houses submerged in water within a month will be cancelled. In addition, the following demands were assured of implementation;
1. Electricity meters will be purchased through e-tendering in the next financial year.
2. The quality of flour will be improved and allocation will be made in proportion to the population.
3. Powers and funds will be issued to local government representatives.
4. A committee will be formed to formulate a code of conduct regarding the elections of the students' union.
5. The agreement and notification signed with the Jammu and Kashmir Joint Public Action Committee on February 4, 2024 will be implemented.
The agreement was signed by Health Minister Dr. Ansar Abdali on behalf of the government, while Shaukat Nawaz Mir, Omar Nazir Kashmiri and Imtiaz Aslam signed on behalf of the Jammu Kashmir Joint Public Action Committee. After this agreement, the call given by the Action Committee on January 23, 2025 was withdrawn.
During this time, the government also had to enter into an agreement with the Jammu Kashmir Joint Public Action Committee that the government would be bound to implement their Charter of Demand within 6 months. On December 8, 2024, the Jammu Kashmir Joint Public Action Committee gave the government 6 months to fully implement the Charter of Demand.
On June 7, 2025, the six-month time expired, but the government of Azad Jammu and Kashmir did not implement any of the provisions of the agreements or notifications as promised, so the Jammu Kashmir Joint Public Action Committee presented an additional Charter of Demand to the government consisting of 38 points, which is in addition to the previous ten demands. The government was given a deadline of September 20, 2025, to implement this charter, after which a lockdown was announced in the entire Azad Jammu and Kashmir on September 29, 2025.
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Azad Jammu and Kashmir >Jammu Kashmir Joint Public Action Committee Civil resistance movement >Wheat flour smuggling >Flour crisis AJK > Electricity tariff hike > Protected/unprotected categories >> Public protests AJK > Statewide strike > Long March AJK > Muzaffarabad protest > Islamgarh incident > Electricity subsidy > Flour subsidy Pakistan > Peaceful Assembly Ordinance AJK > Shutdown strike AJK > Charter of Demands > Student union elections > Local government empowerment >Civil disobedience > Bar Council AJKAJK High Court > Political activism AJK >Telecom spectrum funds >Budget mismanagement AJK >> Accountability movement > Mangla Dam affected areas > Power meter tendering Mass arrests Agreement breach >Lockdown call
2025
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