ISLAMABAD/MUZAFFARABAD – The police in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) said on Saturday they had arrested 72 people linked to a banned protest group, the Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC), during a security crackdown, alleging some detainees possessed weapons, suspicious documents and material aimed at disrupting public order in the region.
The arrests come weeks before legislative elections in AJK amid renewed tensions surrounding the Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC), a protest movement that has led demonstrations over economic grievances, governance reforms and political issues in the region.
“During operations carried out in accordance with the law over the last 18 hours, approximately 72 individuals associated with the banned Joint Awami Action Committee have been arrested,” AJK Police said in a statement on Saturday.
Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) Prime Minister Faisal Mumtaz Rathore said that the government will no longer hold talks with those who spread chaos under the guise of politics.
His statement came a day after the AJK government declared the Jammu Kashmir Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC) a proscribed organisation under anti-terrorism laws ahead of the group’s planned protest on June 9.
Without naming anyone, PM Rathore said the elements involved in sit-ins, arson and riots are supporters of the banned TTP.
The AJK premier further said that he was a witness to all the negotiations held with the now-banned JAAC in the past. “The non-political and non-parliamentary group refused to come to the negotiating table despite repeated efforts,” he added.
Citing the JAAC leaders’ statement, the AJK PM said that “they will not back down from attacking the state”. The state gives the right to peaceful protest, but blackmailing will never be allowed,” he added.
Police said some of those detained were found with weapons, communication devices, suspicious documents and material related to organizing protests and violent activities. Authorities also claimed to have recovered evidence suggesting contacts with foreign individuals, adding that investigations were continuing.
The arrests mark a significant escalation in the authorities’ response to JAAC, which emerged as a leading protest movement in AJK through campaigns against high electricity costs, wheat prices and government privileges before expanding its demands to include broader political and governance reforms.
The development comes after JAAC said one protester was killed and another core member of the group was injured in Rawalakot, the capital of Poonch district, during the recent unrest in the area.
According to the police, preliminary findings after the arrests suggested that some elements were planning to disrupt public order, influence the electoral process, damage public and private property and incite hostility against state institutions through what the statement described as unconstitutional and violent agitation.
JAAC has called for a region-wide shutter-down and wheel-jam strike beginning at Saturday midnight.
The latest crackdown comes as political activity intensifies ahead of the polls, with authorities emphasizing the need to maintain security and public order during the election period.
The AJK government formally declared JAAC a proscribed organization on June 5, placing it in the First Schedule of the AJK Anti-Terrorism Act, 2014.
