AJK Information Secretary Muhammad Rashid Hanif said on Monday that the state of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) has suffered a substantial financial loss of Rs 15 billion due to the unlawful and violent activities of the proscribed Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC).
Addressing a news conference along with the Spokesperson of AJK police, the secretary highlighted how this massive financial hit adds up to the state’s limited resources.
He said the proscribed group has severely disrupted law and order, routine life, local businesses, and students’ education under the pretext of human rights advocacy.
Providing context on the movement’s origins, the secretary explained that it initially began in the early 2020s due to global inflation triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The state immediately stepped in to resolve public grievances regarding wheat and electricity by providing subsidies,” he said, adding that wheat and electricity in AJK remain the cheapest compared to any other region in Pakistan.
He said the movement, which started as a public movement, was later hijacked by anti-state elements. This shift diverted the campaign from its original public agenda toward unscrupulous political motives, ultimately evolving into an unregistered, anti-state movement.
The secretary shared video evidence with the media showcasing JAAC leaders and overseas handlers chanting slogans against Pakistan and its armed forces, promoting chaos and anarchy.
He said the group’s actions have progressively escalated from peaceful protests into organized violence targeting state infrastructure and law enforcement.
During their first sit-in in 2023, protesters overstepped peaceful boundaries by launching attacks on government installations in Dadyal, he said, adding this aggression intensified during their 2024 sit-in, where activists clashed violently with the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) police and desecrated law enforcement uniforms.
He said the hostility has increasingly targeted district officials. Elements of the movement attempted to assassinate an Assistant Commissioner in Chamyati and physically manhandled a Superintendent of Police (SP) alongside other official staff in Bagh.
He said the group has engaged in economic disruption by repeatedly blocking main arteries and halting the supply of essential commodities. Recently, they attempted to forcibly shut down markets in Hajeera, an action successfully thwarted by the local administration.
The secretary strongly condemned the group’s tactics in the Poonch region, where they have resorted to harassing citizens and arming the youth with batons. He expressed deep concern over the group’s recent strategy of using women and children as human shields during confrontations, calling the tactic both dangerous and entirely unacceptable.
He confirmed the credible evidence pointing toward foreign funding aimed at mobilizing overseas Kashmiri diaspora communities to fuel unrest.
He also criticized the proscribed organization for exploiting religious spaces, noting they have used mosques for ulterior political motives while running coordinated, misleading propaganda campaigns across social media platforms to distort ground realities.
The secretary reiterated that the people of Kashmir stand firmly with the state and reject these fringe elements.
He urged citizens to remain vigilant against malicious digital propaganda and encouraged the public to actively participate in the legal, democratic political process to restore complete normalcy to the region.