Jammu Kashmir Joint Awami Action Committee (JKJAAC) and the representatives of the governments of Pakistan and Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) have reached an agreement.
The AJK government has agreed to reduce the size of the cabinet and the privileges of ministers. (Currently 38 to 20 minister/advisors). Similarly, number of adminitrative secretaries shall not exceed 20.
A high powered six-member (2 from JAAC, 2 each from govts of Pakistan and AJK) committee comprising legal and constitutional experts will deliberate on the issue of 12 reserved seats for Kashmiri refugees. These members will not get any funds till the finalisation of the committee findings.
WE Punjab late night Friday reported that both sides have come to a mutual understanding, with the JKJAAC (also called JAAC – Joint Awami Action Committee) having nearly 80 percent of its demands accepted.
(Picture below shows the agreement signed between the members of the JAAC and government committee. Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Dr Tariq Fazal Chaudhry posted the following agreement on his official X account).
Earlier, representatives of the governments of Pakistan and AJK held dialogue with JAAC leaders.
Members of the Federal (Pakistan) Government Committee:
Former Prime Minister Raja Pervaiz Ashraf. Federal Ministers Rana Sanaullah, Ahsan Iqbal, Amir Muqam, Tariq Fazal Chaudhry, Sardar Yousaf. Former Minister Qamar Zaman Kaira.
Members of the AJK Government Committee:
AJK minieters Diwan Ali Chugtai and Faisal Rathore.
Members of the JAAC:
Raja Amjad, Shaukat Nawaz Mir and Anjum Zaman Aan.
Both sides held two rounds of lengthy dialogue over two days, while thousands of protestors continued their sit-in across different parts of the valley, including the capital Muzaffarabad. The Pakistani government had invited JAAC for talks after a week-long violent protest that resulted in the killing and injury of multiple security personnel and protestors.
Joint Awami Action Committee:
Formed in mid-2023, JAAC is a representative body of Kashmiri traders, rights activists, lawyers, and other individual groups, as well as prominent members of AJK. A 30-member core committee make has the deciding authority. The committee organised a massive protest movement in AJK in 2024.
Some ruling party leaders and social media activists tried to link the movement and unrest to India. However, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has overwhelmingly supported it. Jamaat-e-Islami Pakistan Emir Hafiz Naeem ur Rehman also expressed support for JAAC’s demands but urged them not to engage in violence.
