Islamabad: Pakistan’s Defence Minister Khawaja Asif equating protesters of Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoK) with India and calling them “enemies” indicates that he is preparing to deploy the iron fist on the occupied territory, a report has revealed.
“I put them (protesters) in the same category as India and consider them also as enemies like India,” Asif said in a video that has surfaced on various social media platforms. His remarks came amid the ongoing unrest in PoJK, which has claimed dozens of lives. Videos of Pakistani security personnel openly firing on civilians in PoJK’s Rawalakot and several other areas have also gone viral on social media.
‘His comment does not bode well for the people of PoJK. By portraying the protesters as ‘enemies,’ Asif is preparing to deploy the iron fist on PoJK,” Sudha Ramachandran wrote in a report in The Diplomat.
At least 21 protesters were killed and dozens of others injured when Pakistani security forces opened fire on protesters in PoJK on July 27. The protesters led by the Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC), a coalition of traders, students and civil society organisations, had gathered at Rawalakot and had started marching towards Muzaffarabad, when the Pakistani forces launched a crackdown. Casualty figures are difficult to confirm as the Pakistan authorities imposed a shutdown on communications in PoJK.
Formed in 2023, the JAAC initially raised issues of a hike in wheat prices and electricity tariffs. However, in 2025, the JAAC called for governance and electoral reforms, like the abolition of refugee seats in PoJK assembly, which are reserved for people who migrated from India’s Kashmir after 1947, the majority of whom do not reside in PoJK. Among the PoJK legislative assembly’s 53 seats, 12 are reserved for refugees, eight for women, ulema (Islamic scholars) and technocrats, resulting in only 33 seats left for direct polling. All the political parties in PoJK have exploited the refugee seats to form the government in the occupied territory, according to The Diplomat report.
For years, Pakistan has portrayed PoJK as a self-governing territory, however, the reality is that the decisions regarding PoJK are taken in Islamabad.
“The protests in PoJK have grown in magnitude over the past two months and their geographic spread has expanded as well. Rawalakot was the epicentre of the protests until last week, but unrest has now spilled over to Muzaffarabad, Mirpur and other districts. The lethality of the Pakistani government’s response to the protests has grown too,” wrote Ramachandran.
“The mounting casualties could transform the mass protests into a political movement. Of course, the Pakistani government can be expected to unleash the full force of their iron fist before the movement morphs into something bigger. brute force has always been the response of Pakistan’s establishment to protests and resistance,” the author added.
(IANS)
