Federal govt’s delegation signs an agreement with Joint Awami Action Committee to end the ongoing protest in AJK
MUZAFFARABAD ( WEB NEWS )
The federal government’s delegation has signed an agreement with the Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC) to end the ongoing protest and unrest in Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Tariq Fazal Chaudhry said on Saturday.
Talks between the JAAC, the AJK government and federal ministers over elite privileges and reserved seats for refugees broke down last week. Rival groups have since staged protests, trading blame for violence that marred what began as a largely peaceful movement in AJK. Fierce clashes between protesters and law enforcers have left at least 10 people dead and scores critically injured in the territory.
“Our negotiation delegation has signed on a final agreement with the AJK Joint Action Committee. The protesters are returning to their homes. All roads have reopened,” Dr. Tariq Fazal Chaudhry said on X in the early hours of Saturday. “This is a victory of peace. Long live Azad Kashmir,” the minister added.
The signing of the agreement comes after two rounds of talks between a high-level government delegation and the JAAC in as many days.
Dr. Tariq Fazal Chaudhry shared a copy of the pact on X, which listed 12 “decisions” taken and 13 “additional points”.
In order to oversee and implement the agreement, a Monitoring and Implementation Committee comprising representatives from the federal government, its AJK counterpart and the JAAC will be notified, the document said.
Besides Dr. Tariq Fazal Chaudhry and Kashmir Affairs Minister Engineer Amir Muqam from the federal government, the panel will also include two nominated representatives from the AJK administration and two members of the JAAC.
The committee will be responsible for dispute resolution, will formulate rules and regulations of the working methodology and define timelines for the implementation of every decision in the “light of budgetary allocation and other constraints”.
“The committee will also review existing perks and privileges / fringe benefits authorised to [the] judiciary, government officials and ministers in order to rationalise it,” the agreement read.
Dr. Tariq Fazal Chaudhry, Amir Muqam, Inter-provincial Coordination Minister Rana Sanaullah Khan, Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal Chauhdry, Religious Affairs Minister Sardar Muhammad Yousaf, former adviser to prime minister on Kashmir affairs Chaudhry Qamar Zaman Kaira, ex-AJK president Sardar Muhammad Masood Ahmed Khan and former prime minister Raja Pervez Ashraf were part of the government’s negotiating team.
From the AJK government’s side, Education Minister Diwan Ali Chugtai and Local Government Minister Faisal Mumtaz Rathore took part in the talks, according to a copy of the signed pact shared by Dr. Tariq Fazal Chaudhry.
Raja Amjad, Shaukat Nawaz Mir and Anjum Zaman Awan represented the JAAC.
Meanwhile Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Ahsan Iqbal Chaudhry has said that agreement has been signed with Joint Action Committee of Azad Jammu and Kashmir.
In a post on social media platform X, he said the people of Azad Jammu and Kashmir have always stood at the frontlines of Pakistan’s national cause, and their voice carries immense weight. He said over the past weeks, we saw a difficult situation due to legitimate public concerns. He said it was the wisdom of local and national leadership and the spirit of dialogue that enabled us to resolve this stand-off peacefully, without violence, without division and with mutual respect.
Ahsan Iqbal said it is a victory of the people of AJK, Pakistan and Democracy. The Planning Minister said the Joint Action Committee raised voice of citizens and the government under Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif took these voices seriously. He said we will work together for good governance and development in AJK.
Adviser to the Prime Minister, Rana Sanaullah Khan, speaking to the media, thanked the JAAC for participating in the discussions and expressed deep sorrow over the loss of lives on both sides during the recent unrest.
Rana Sanaullah added that all the legitimate demands of the JAAC had been accepted, marking a step toward resolving the crisis peacefully.
Key points of the agreement between the federal ministers’ committee and the JAAC:
- Cases under anti-terrorism laws will be filed for deaths in violent incidents.
- Compensation will be given to the families of those who died on 1st and 2nd October.
- Families of protesters will receive the same compensation as the families of officials.
- Injured individuals will receive Rs 1 million each.
- One member of the family of a deceased protester will be given government job within 20 days.
- Two additional Secondary Education Boards will be established in Muzaffarabad and Poonch within 30 days.
- All three AJK Secondary Boards will be linked with the Federal Board.
- The existing Local Government Act will be restored within 90 days in accordance with judicial rulings.
- AJK government will release funds for the health card within 15 days.
- MRI and CT scan machines will be provided in all districts of AJK with federal funding.
- Pakistan government will provide Rs10 billion to improve the electricity system in AJK.
- The size of the AJK cabinet will be reduced to 20 ministers and advisers.
- The number of administrative secretaries will not exceed 20.
- Civil defence departments will be merged into the SDMA.
- The Accountability Bureau and Anti-Corruption Establishment will be merged.
- AJK’s Accountability Act will be aligned with Pakistan’s NAB laws.
- Feasibility reports for two tunnels in AJK will be prepared by the Pakistan government.
- The project will be prioritised under the Saudi Development Fund as per PC-1 guidelines.
- A high-powered committee of legal and constitutional experts will be formed.
- The committee will consult on members selected from outside AJK.
- Until the committee submits its final report, the privileges of these members will remain suspended.
- Funding, ministry status, and other perks for these members will remain on hold until the final report is submitted.