AJK police accuse JAAC of working under an 'agenda', say sophisticated weapons seized from arrested suspects

Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) Police on Wednesday accused the proscribed Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC) of working under an “agenda”, saying that sophisticated weapons had been seized from arrested suspects. Addressing a press conference, Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Khawar Ali Shaukat alleged that the incidents in Rawalakot had demonstrated that the organisation’s narrative of peaceful protest was inconsistent with events on the ground. “The violent incidents, acts of provocation and attacks on security forces have made the reality clear,” he said, adding that it was the legal and constitutional responsibility of law enforcement agencies to act whenever police or other security personnel came under attack. The SSP alleged that armed groups had ambushed officials at different locations across the city over the past two days and opened fire on security personnel with sophisticated weapons. He said one Rangers official was martyred while around 15 police officers and other law enforcement personnel were injured in the attacks. “This demonstrates that the proscribed group is working under an agenda, the purpose of which is to disrupt peace in AJK, disturb the social fabric and damage atmosphere of brotherhood,” he said. “The events of yesterday and today, the way our forces have been attacked with heavy and sophisticated weapons, shows that these groups … this is not an ordinary organisation,” he said. He said law enforcement agencies had arrested several suspects allegedly involved in the violence and recovered a large cache of arms, including heavy weapons. “An automatic American weapon was also recovered,” he said, adding that this indicated that banned organisation was operating under a “different agenda”. Rejecting what he described as a misleading narrative circulating on social media, Shaukat said the group was falsely portraying itself as peaceful while accusing security forces of targeting protesters. “The facts on the ground are contrary to those claims,” he asserted. He maintained that law enforcement agencies had exercised restraint throughout the situation and only responded when their personnel came under attack. The police official’s remarks come after clashes between protesters and law enforcement personnel in Rawalakot on Monday and Mirpur on Tuesday, which reportedly resulted in several casualties. The JAAC, which has been demanding the abolishment of 12 seats in the local legislature reserved for refugees from Indian-held Kashmir, has been holding protests in the region for several weeks now. On Tuesday, the government accused militant elements “pursuing a foreign agenda and backed by Indian funding” of fomenting the unrest. On the other hand, the JAAC alleged that dozens of its supporters were killed in clashes with security personnel, but there was no official confirmation of the claim from any quarters.