Daijiworld Media Network – Muzaffarabad

Muzaffarabad, Sep 29: Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir (PoK) is bracing for one of its biggest uprisings in decades as the Awami Action Committee (AAC) launches a “shutter-down and wheel-jam” strike from Monday, demanding long-denied political and economic rights.

Internet services were cut at midnight and heavy security has been deployed across the region to prevent mobilisation. Heavily armed convoys staged flag marches through major towns, and thousands of troops were moved in from Punjab. Islamabad has also dispatched an additional 1,000 police personnel to reinforce local forces.

AAC, a civil society alliance, is pressing a 38-point charter that includes abolishing 12 assembly seats reserved for Kashmiri refugees in Pakistan, subsidised flour, fair power tariffs from the Mangla hydropower project, and long-promised structural reforms. “Our campaign is not against any institution but for the fundamental rights denied to our people for over 70 years,” said AAC leader Shaukat Nawaz Mir, warning of intensified action if demands are ignored.

Thirteen hours of talks between AAC representatives, the PoK administration and federal ministers collapsed over the weekend after the committee refused to compromise on eliminating elite privileges and refugee seats.

Traders in Muzaffarabad kept shops open on Sunday for citizens to stock up on essentials ahead of the shutdown. Videos circulating online showed residents chanting slogans for freedom from Pakistan’s rule as security convoys rolled in.

Both sides remain firm, setting the stage for a potentially volatile confrontation that could reshape the region’s struggle for political rights.