Explaining the latest violence in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir

The story so far: Pakistan-occupied Kashmir has been rocked by deadly violence in the past few days, leaving at least four dead and over 100 injured in clashes over the soaring prices of essential goods like wheat flour, fuel, and electricity.

The recent wave of unrest began on May 10 after the overnight arrest of several leaders of the Jammu Kashmir Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC), which had planned a “long march” to Muzaffarabad on May 11. The crackdown sparked widespread outrage, prompting thousands to take to the streets, resulting in clashes with the police. One police officer was killed, and several others sustained injuries amid the clashes, which saw the police resorting to tear gas shelling.

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As tensions escalated due to the strike, which paralysed all walks of life in the region, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif approved the grant of a $86.25 million subsidy programme on May 13. While the decision reduced the prices of wheat and flour, prompting the JAAC to chart its next course of action, renewed violence followed on May 14 after a convoy of paramilitary Rangers called to maintain law and order came under attack by “charged protesters” as the troops were moving out of the region.

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Growing discontent
Activists and politicians from PoK have long accused Islamabad of “serious discrimination,” protesting against heavy cuts in budgetary grants, imposition of “unjust” taxes on electricity bills, rise in inflation, shortage of wheat, load shedding and not considering locals for jobs.

At a Senate meeting last year, PoK’s ‘Prime Minister’ Chaudhry Anwarul Haq alleged that “PoK produced about 2,600 MW of hydropower and required only 350 MW, but the State government was neither given its due share in the Net Hydel Profit as permissible to provinces under Article 157 nor under the National Finance Commission (NFC) that entitled it to about 3.64% share in federal resources.”

Local newspaper The Dawn further reported Mr. Haq’s concerns regarding the Finance Ministry deducting its finances by 61 billion Pakistani rupees on account of electricity bills, while failing to take responsibility for 400 billion Pakistani rupees payable to the region for Mangla dam water charges and hydel profit on the Neelum-Jhelum project. He also accused the government of not accepting his request for a hike in the salaries of government employees in line with federal and provincial employees.

Earlier this month, activist Shabir Choudhry also highlighted the simmering discontent in PoK, claiming that the situation was worsening with locals frustrated over Islamabad’s “false promises.”

What triggered clashes in PoK?
The recent wave of violence can be traced to last year’s mass protests and a civil disobedience campaign that broke out across Pakistan against high wheat prices and electricity tariffs.

At the forefront of the 2023 protests was JAAC — a committee comprising traders, labour leaders and civil society members. The association’s main demands include subsidised wheat flour, fair electricity pricing based on hydropower generation costs and an end to the privileges of the elite class. According to a report in The Dawn, the panel reached an agreement with an official reconciliation committee of cabinet members regarding their demands concerning electricity tariffs in December last year. An official notification was issued in February. However, the committee announced a protest across the State in April, asking people to stage a “long march” to Muzaffarabad against “non-fulfilment” of the commitments made by the official panel.

A day ahead of the planned protest march, around 70 members of the JAAC were reportedly arrested by police in overnight raids on the Muzaffarabad and Mirpur divisions. To protest against the police crackdown, the association announced a “shutter-down and wheel-jam” strike across the region.

Meanwhile, clashes broke out in parts of PoK, with police resorting to teargas shelling as protesters hurled stones in Dadyal tehsil in Mirpur. As per a Dawn report, several schoolchildren were injured after teargas shells landed in a nearby school. Alliance leader Shaukat Nawaz Mir released a video message, moving protests to May 10 against the “brutal attitude” used by the police against peaceful protesters.

Violence soon spread to other parts as protesters clashed with police and Rangers were called in to maintain law and order. Section 144 was imposed in the region, while authorities banned rallies and processions in all districts. Mobile phone and internet services were suspended in some parts as businesses, markets, banks and educational institutes remained closed. News agency PTI reported that police blocked arterial roads leading to Muzaffarabad to prevent people from heading towards the city.

Reports, meanwhile, emerged of more arrests as violence spread to the entire region. A sub-inspector succumbed to a gunshot wound in the chest in Islamgarh, where he was deployed along with other police personnel to stop a rally headed to Muzaffarabad via Kotli and Poonch districts, Mirpur Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Kamran Ali told The Dawn. A hundred others were injured as clashes continued, local media reported on May 12.

JAAC spokesperson Hafeez Hamdani claimed that the alliance had nothing to do with violence. “It seems that such elements have been purposely planted in the ranks of protesters to bring a bad name to a struggle that aims for nothing but the legitimate rights of the people,” he added.

How has the government responded?
PoK Finance Minister Abdul Majid Khan said the government had accepted all demands of the action committee, after which an agreement was signed, but the panel deviated from the agreement and announced a protest based on new demands. He added that the administration had exercised “maximum restraint” and was ready for talks.

As the situation spiralled out of control, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said he was “deeply concerned” about the situation. Directing PoK ‘Prime Minister’ Chaudhry Anwarul Haq to talk to the leaders of the action committee, Mr. Sharif warned that there should be “absolutely no tolerance for taking the law into one’s own hands.”

Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari also urged the stakeholders to exercise restraint and resolve issues through dialogue and mutual consultation.

On May 13, the Pakistani PM approved the grant of a $86.25 million subsidy programme for the immediate relief of PoK. “The consumers will be charged Pakistani Rs 3 per unit for using up to 100 units, Pakistani Rs 5 per unit for over 100 to 300 units and Pakistani Rs 6 for over 300 units whereas the flour price per 40 kg bag has been fixed at Pakistani Rs 2,000 [down from Pakistani Rs 3,100],” Mr. Haq told media, terming the package as a “gift” from the government.

As per a Dawn report, a notification announced the following tariffs as approved for domestic and commercial users:

1-100 units Pakistani Rs 3 per kilowatt-hour (kWh) for domestic users
100-300 units: Pakistani Rs 5/kWh for domestic users
1-300 units: Pakistani Rs 10/kWh for commercial users
300+ units: Pakistani Rs 6/kWh for domestic users, Pakistani Rs 15/kWh for commercial users
Rallies and protests, however, continued in the region against the use of force to quell demonstrations. The JAAC leadership also said it will “legally examine” the notification to ascertain if it is as per its demands.

Meanwhile, shortly after the announcement, a convoy of Rangers came under attack while moving out of the region. As the Rangers reached Muzaffarabad amid a “charged atmosphere,” their convoy was pelted with stones, and the security forces retaliated by teargas shelling and firing, TheDawn reported. Some of the vehicles were set on fire. As per the newspaper report, the shelling was so intense that the entire neighbourhood reeled from it. Three people were killed and six others were injured in the firing, Muzaffarabad Divisional Commissioner Sardar Adnan Khurshid later shared. “There is tension and anger in the air,” Adil Hameed, a resident of Muzaffarabad, told TheDawn.

Terming the incident “state terrorism,” JAAC leader Mr. Mir on Tuesday demanded punishment for those behind the attack and called for a judicial inquiry into the police action. He, meanwhile, announced the alliance’s decision to end the protest but vowed to continue fighting for the rights and resources of PoK, media has reported.