At least 11 people were killed in clashes between police and supporters of a banned group in Pakistan-administered Kashmir, officials said Monday (June 8), a day before a planned protest over political rights and legislative representation.
Dozens of others, including police and civilians, were wounded in the violence that erupted Sunday (June 7) after the High Court of Pakistan-administered Kashmir ruled that 12 legislative seats reserved for Kashmiri refugees living in Pakistan were constitutionally protected and could not be abolished without a constitutional amendment.
The landmark ruling came ahead of a planned protest Tuesday (June 9) by the United People’s Action Committee (JAAC) – a banned organization that has long demanded greater political rights for the region’s residents and the elimination of the reserved seats for refugees, arguing that the refugees wield disproportionate influence.
The group has staged large rallies in recent years, some of which turned violent. Sardar Waheed Khan, commissioner of the Poonch region, told Reuters: “Four police officers and a passerby were killed after troublemakers fired at them. As a result of the response by law enforcement agencies, six protesters were killed.”
Police chief Liaqat Malik said 23 security personnel and 50 protesters were among those wounded in Sunday’s incident, with 30 suspects arrested in the Himalayan region, which is a flashpoint with neighboring India.
According to regional police, armed JAAC supporters opened fire on security forces in Rawalakot, a city in Pakistan-administered Kashmir, and then laid siege to the Combined Military Hospital, disrupting medical services. Authorities said security forces eventually dispersed the crowd and restored order.
Police accused the protesters of arson and vandalizing public and private property. Shaukat Nawaz Mir, a JAAC leader, said in a video on X: “The state has started a massacre of our people in Rawalakot.” He vowed that the group would unite to participate in the June 9 protest.
On Friday (June 5), regional authorities listed JAAC as a banned organization under anti-terrorism laws and advised domestic and foreign tourists to leave the area before June 9. Large JAAC protests over the past two years against rising flour and electricity prices have turned deadly after violent security crackdowns.
Commissioner Khan said: “JAAC leaders are misleading the public by calling it a massacre. The state action was aimed at restoring law and order.” As security forces tried to disperse the protesters, activists used automatic rifles, petrol bombs and other weapons to target them, he added.
