Mass protests force AJK govt to withdraw controversial law

• Govt agrees to quash cases against activists; local representatives to get powers and funds
• PML-N, PTI seek resignation of coalition govt

MUZAFFARABAD: After several days of protests that brought the territory to a standstill, the Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) government on Sunday withdrew a controversial presidential ordinance and accepted several demands of the Jammu Kashmir Joint Awami Action Committee (JKJAAC) coalition.

The demonstrations, which gained momentum on Saturday, saw thousands of people braving harsh weather to converge at several entry points, including Brarkot, Kohala, and Holar.

After deliberations, the protest leaders had announced plans to march towards the Legislative Assembly in Muzaffarabad’s Chattar neighbourhood on Sunday.

The protesters had demanded the abrogation of the ‘Peaceful Assembly and Public Order Ordinance, 2024’, which barred unregistered organisations from holding gatherings or protests and mandated registered groups to seek permission a week before their planned gatherings.

Sensing growing public resentment, the PPP, a coalition partner in the AJK government, was the first to reject the ordinance during its meeting in Karachi. Shortly afterwards, Shah Ghulam Qadir, the regional president of the PML-N, echoed a similar stance.

Amid these developments, President Barrister Sultan Mahmood announced that he had already directed Prime Minister Chaudhry Anwarul Haq to withdraw the ordinance, and the requisite steps were underway.

Late on Saturday night, Shaukat Nawaz Mir, a prominent JKJAAC leader from Muzaffarabad who had led a big rally to Brarkot, headed to Kohala for consultations with Sardar Umar Nazir Kashmiri and Imtiaz Aslam, who had mobilised thousands of protesters from Poonch, Bagh, and Haveli districts.

Sunday also saw the continuation of the shutter-down strike in most parts of AJK, particularly in Muzaffarabad.

Negotiations and agreement

At 9am on Sunday, an official team, comprising Health Minister Nisar Ansar Abdali, Information Secretary Sardar Adnan Khurshid, Poonch Commissioner Sardar Waheed Khan, and DIG Shehryar Sikander, arrived in Kohala for formal negotiations, resulting in a written agreement in which the government accepted not only the primary demands, but also several other points.

The agreement included a commitment to withdrawing all cases against activists within seven days to three months, reinstatement of dismissed teacher Sohaib Arif in Poonch, permanent employment for the brother of Azhar, who was killed in the May 13 firing incident, and compensation of Rs1 million each to four others who were injured in the same incident, within a week.

Additionally, the agreement stipulated that houses affected by Mangla Dam upraising would have their electricity meters and bills waived. The Punjab and AJK governments would take joint measures to restore the road damaged by the Azad Pattan Dam.

Moreover, flour quality would be improved with allocations adjusted according to population, and electricity meters procured via e-tendering in the next fiscal year.

Local representatives would be granted powers and funds, and a committee would be formed to establish a code of conduct for student union elections, the agreement added.

It also stated that a six-month dialogue would address the JKJAAC’s separate ‘Charter of Demands’ without further amendments.

Mr Mir later told Dawn that the charter included reducing elite privileges, granting scheduled bank status to the Bank of AJK, improving cellular services, and implementing the AJK High Court decision on the Neelum-Jhelum Hydropower Project.

On its part, the JKJAAC withdrew its call for the January 23 long march.

By noon, the government team handed over the Law Department’s notification, officially withdrawing the Peaceful Assembly and Public Order Ordinance 2024.

Notifications were also issued for the release of all detainees, the reinstatement of teacher Arif, the payment of electricity arrears in 36 instalments instead of 24, and revised tariffs for 5KW commercial and general service categories.

After receiving the notifications, the convoy from Poonch returned, and Mr Mir drove to Brarkot to share the news amid sloganeering. Celebratory rallies were later held at Muzaffarabad’s Lal Chowk, as well as in Supply Bazar Rawalakot, Bagh Kotli, and other areas.

Information Minister Pir Mazhar Saeed commended the JKJAAC for responsibly observing peaceful protests and thwarting the designs of disruptive elements. Accompanied by four cabinet colleagues, he also expressed gratitude to the president, judiciary, civil society, lawyer forums, media, and police for maintaining law and order during the protests. “Resolution through dialogue was our preference, and we succeeded in it,” he said.

Call for AJK PM’s resignation

Meanwhile, congratulating the people and the action committee’s leadership on the success of the protest, PTI’s regional president and former AJK premier Sardar Abdul Qayyum Niazi demanded immediate resignation of the coalition government, followed by fresh polls.

He alleged that due to the incompetence of the coalition government, the territory was facing one problem after another.

“Had they realised the sensitivity of the matter and withdrawn the black law on their own, they could have saved themselves from public resentment and disgrace,” Mr Niazi remarked.

PML-N leader and former premier Raja Farooq Haider also demanded the resignation of Prime Minister Haq.

“The withdrawal of the ordinance is like a post-mortem cure, apart from being evidence of the hybrid regime’s failure,” he said in a statement.

Published in Dawn, December 9th, 2024