AJK protests

On Monday, trying to manage a rather embarrassing and disruptive crisis, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif approved a Rs23 billion grant on an urgent basis to resolve the issues people in Azad and Jammu Kashmir (AJK) say they face. This development comes after protests and demonstrations erupted in AJK last week on the call of the Awami Action Committee (AAC) against inflated electricity bills and taxes. However, despite successful negotiations between the government and the AAC having been concluded, the AAC said they would wait for the notification regarding acceptance of their demands. The protests have been fraught with tensions, and on Saturday an assistant sub-inspector was killed, and several protesters were injured. Things seemed to have calmed down following PM Shehbaz’s decision to intervene. On Sunday, he tweeted that he was “deeply concerned” about the AJK situation and also cautioned that in such situations, “there are always some who rush in to score political points” and that peaceful protests, debate are “the beauties of democracy”. However, he warned that “there should be absolutely no tolerance for taking the law in one’s own hands and damaging government properties”. PM Shehbaz also spoke with AJK Prime Minister Chaudhry Anwarul Haq and urged all parties to resort to a peaceful course of action for the resolution of people’s demands.

Amid all the chaos, it was good to see the PM’s political adviser and senior PML-N leader, Rana Sanaullah, admit that the government ‘mishandled’ the situation in AJK. From President Asif Ali Zardari to PM Shehbaz to other political stakeholders, everyone has given responsible statements and asked for restraint while trying to find a solution to these demands. High inflation is a huge issue across the country. People with lower incomes are finding it more and more difficult to manage with the high utility bills as well as high food inflation. It is important that the government addresses people’s grievances and brings the prices down, especially when it comes to essential food items and utility bills for lower income households.

The situation in AJK has been brewing for quite some time now due to the high electricity prices, flour prices and taxes apart from some other demands. As Rana said, this situation should have been dealt with before things got out of control, leading to a death and several injuries. With elections in India, such incidents will be exploited by Narendra Modi and others in the region. The AJK government should have handled the situation more delicately given the eyes on Kashmir. However, sanity has finally prevailed and it seems that everything will be resolved quickly and efficiently. On the other hand, it is good to see that all stakeholders reacted in a responsible manner. This is also a lesson for the Indian government that continues to oppress the people of Occupied Kashmir. Those in India and abroad who are comparing Azad Kashmir with Indian Occupied Kashmir are doing so despite knowing that it is like literally comparing chalk and cheese. Pakistan has always stood by the Kashmiris unlike India that has occupied and oppressed the people of Kashmir for over seven decades.