Rana Sanaullah says next elected AJK Assembly will decide on refugee seats

ISLAMABAD: Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Political Affairs Rana Sanaullah has said that the welcomed a mediation offer by Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman to help resolve the ongoing unrest in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK).

Addressing the National Assembly, Sanaullah said the government had met 37 out of 38 demands raised last year by the now-banned Jammu Kashmir Joint Awami Action Committee (JKJAAC).

He said the group had returned to the streets to demand the abolition of 12 seats reserved for Kashmiri refugees in the AJK Legislative Assembly.

Sanaullah told parliament that the government is open to dialogue to end the friction in AJK.

He said the government had already implemented 37 out of 38 demands previously put forward by the group, including multi-billion rupee subsidies on wheat and a sharp reduction in electricity tariffs to Rs4 per unit.

He said that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had also approved a Rs23 billion relief package to address the economic shortfall.

However, the PM’s adviser said the latest wave of street protests stems from a deadlock over the final outstanding demand: the abolition of 12 seats reserved in the AJK Legislative Assembly for Kashmiri refugees.

“The government wants to resolve all issues through dialogue, but the protesters are bent on causing damage to the core Kashmir cause,” Sanaullah said, adding that the reserved seats represent families displaced from Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir and cannot be abolished under pressure or through street protest or executive fiat.

Sanaullah alleged that the protesters are seeking to sabotage regional elections scheduled to take place on July 27.

He urged the protesters to halt street agitation, participate in talks, and allow the incoming elected assembly to decide the legislative future of the refugee seats.

Sanaullah said the issue of abolishing the 12 seats reserved in the AJK Legislative Assembly for Kashmiri refugees fell within the legislative authority of the AJK Assembly, and should be decided through constitutional and legal procedures.

He also said the government’s proposal to convene an all-parties conference on the issue had not been accepted by the action committee.