Several injured in clashes with police amid JAAC-led shutdown and growing political tensions..reports Asian Lite News Desk
Several people, including police personnel, were injured as clashes broke out between protesters and law enforcement officials across Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) during a shutdown and protest called by the Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC), local media reported on Monday.
The demonstrations, observed on Sunday, disrupted normal life across several parts of PoK, with markets remaining shut, public transport suspended and security forces deployed in major towns.
According to Pakistan’s Dawn newspaper, the worst violence was reported from Dadyal town in Mirpur district, where clashes between protesters and police left around a dozen people injured, including several members of the security forces.
The first confrontation reportedly occurred in Amb village, where at least three protesters sustained injuries. A second round of clashes later in the day left another demonstrator critically injured and requiring treatment at Mirpur’s Divisional Headquarters Hospital.
Hospital officials told Dawn that four injured persons had been admitted, including two in critical condition.
Elsewhere in Mirpur district, women staged demonstrations in Khaliqabad, while protests in Islamgarh and Chakswari remained peaceful. Similar demonstrations were also reported in Samahni valley in Bhimber district and in Barnala subdivision, where women and children participated in peaceful rallies.
In Muzaffarabad, the regional capital, commercial establishments remained closed and roads wore a deserted look as the shutdown affected transport services and business activity.
Police and other security personnel carried out flag marches in different parts of the city to maintain order.
Tensions escalated at Airport Chowk in Muzaffarabad when police used tear gas to disperse protesters, including a group of women reportedly from Ghan Chattar village. Police sources said four men and three women were detained during the operation.
Videos circulating on social media showed damaged vehicles, motorcycles strewn along the roadside and property damaged following the clashes.
Residents later staged a sit-in, accusing law enforcement personnel of using excessive force against demonstrators. Police also detained several youths in the Tariqabad and Lower Chattar areas after they allegedly attempted to block roads and throw stones at security personnel, Dawn reported.
Protests were also organised in several parts of the Poonch division, including Shujaabad, Hajira, Mutyalmera, Paniola and Abbaspur.
Addressing a gathering on Sunday evening, JAAC core committee member Imtiaz Aslam issued what he described as a final deadline of July 8 for the authorities to implement the group’s demands.
He warned that if the government failed to respond, the committee would announce its next course of action on July 9, marking one month since the JAAC launched its sit-in protest.
Meanwhile, internet services across Pakistan-occupied Kashmir remained suspended for the 30th consecutive day.
The latest unrest follows the Pakistani authorities’ decision on June 5 to ban the JAAC, designating the grassroots organisation as a “terrorist” group. The committee has been campaigning on a range of political and governance issues, including the abolition of 12 seats in the PoK Legislative Assembly reserved for Kashmiri refugees residing in Pakistan.
