PoK poll clashes leave 14 JAAC activists dead, group alleges

Islamabad,UPDATED: Jul 28, 2026 17:38 IST

At least 14 activists of the banned Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC) were killed and more than two dozen injured in clashes with law-enforcement personnel during the first phase of elections for the so-called legislative assembly in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), the organisation claimed on Tuesday. The regional authorities disputed the toll and accused JAAC protesters of opening fire on security personnel.

The violence came as the JAAC intensified its agitation over 12 contentious seats in the so-called regional legislative assembly, which it alleges are used by the establishment to install a prime minister of its choosing. India on July 14 described the protests in PoK as a "direct consequence" of Islamabad's decades-long "systemic exploitation and administrative oppression" in areas under its "forcible" occupation, and criticised police brutality against protesters. India maintains that the entire Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh are integral and inalienable parts of it.

As the first phase of polling was held on Monday on 13 seats, the JAAC took out a long march from Rawalakot towards the regional capital, Muzaffarabad. The organisation said its activists were killed when law-enforcement personnel opened fire on those taking part in the march, though the claim could not be independently verified.

JAAC core committee member Abid Shaheen told the BBC that around a dozen activists had been killed and more than 20 wounded in Monday's clashes. Another committee member, Imtiaz Aslam, put the death toll at 14 and said those killed included Usman Nazir, younger brother of JAAC founding member Umar Nazir. Shaheen said the bodies had been taken to a medical camp near Drek, where the JAAC has been holding a sit-in for one-and-a-half months.

The JAAC denied that its marchers were armed and said they were carrying only sticks. PoK police chief Captain (retd.) Liaquat Ali Malik rejected the claim and said the protesters had modern weapons and were targeting security personnel. He said the reported deaths could not be verified until bodies were recovered, officially recorded or brought to hospitals for post-mortem examinations. Malik also said that during an operation against the JAAC last month, the group had claimed 400 deaths, while five fatalities had been officially recorded.

Malik, however, confirmed that one Rangers personnel was killed and two others were wounded in firing during the clashes. Two police personnel were also injured. He said JAAC activists positioned in the mountains opened fire on police and security personnel after darkness fell as the protesters tried to advance towards Rawalakot. A Rawalakot district administration officer said around 3,000 protesters had marched towards the city from Drek, while another group of about 2,000 approached from the bus terminal side, and the authorities stopped them from entering the city.

In the Poonch region, police said armed groups linked to the banned JAAC tried to enter Rawalakot and opened fire on law-enforcement personnel after being asked to disperse, injuring two policemen. The police also accused JAAC-linked social media accounts of circulating fabricated videos and distorting facts to mislead the public. Shaheen rejected the allegations and accused law-enforcement personnel of opening "unprovoked fire" on a peaceful long march. He said the march would continue to Muzaffarabad.

The confrontation came after weeks of JAAC protests over its demand to abolish 12 legislative assembly seats reserved for Kashmiri refugees. The group began protests and a long march across PoK on June 9, and before Monday's violence, 40 people had reportedly been killed in the unrest, including 34 protesters and six police and paramilitary personnel. The government opened negotiations with the JAAC before the assembly elections, but the talks have not produced a settlement, and the group was banned last month. The first phase of the elections was held in Mirpur on Monday, polling in Muzaffarabad is scheduled for August 2, and voting in the Poonch division will take place on August 10. The authorities have suspended Internet services in the Kashmir region, and there is also a complete media ban in Pakistan on coverage of the JAAC protests. The so-called PoK legislative assembly has 53 seats, of which 45 are directly elected and eight are reserved for women, technocrats and clerics.

With PTI Inputs

- Ends