Muzaffarabad/Rawalakot: A prolonged protest movement in Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK), driven by demands for basic rights, political representation, affordable food and electricity, has descended into a major confrontation between civilians and Pakistani authorities, with reports of security forces opening fire on demonstrators and scores of people being killed or injured.

The unrest, which has spread across several parts of the territory, has exposed deep public anger over governance, economic hardship and political representation. Protesters associated with the Jammu Kashmir Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC) have accused the authorities of responding to peaceful demonstrations with excessive force instead of addressing their demands through dialogue.

The situation has also triggered allegations of disappearances, arrests, communication restrictions and the use of anti-terror laws against activists.

Independent reporting has documented accounts from residents and protesters who alleged that security personnel fired on unarmed demonstrators during clashes in Rawalakot and other areas. Witnesses interviewed by Australia’s ABC News described seeing armed security officials firing at protesters and said civilians were killed during the crackdown. The Pakistani authorities, however, have disputed the protesters’ account and said security forces came under attack and used force amid violent clashes.

Protest movement rooted in basic demands

The current agitation has its roots in a series of longstanding political and socioeconomic grievances.

The JAAC emerged as a prominent platform during earlier protests over the rising cost of living. Its demands have included affordable wheat and flour, lower electricity prices, improved governance, better education, greater political representation and reforms to the region’s political system.

A particularly contentious issue has been the existence of 12 seats in the Azad Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly reserved for refugees from the Indian-administered side of Jammu and Kashmir. Protest leaders argue that these seats are occupied by politicians living outside the territory and that the arrangement undermines the political representation of people actually living in Pakistan-administered Kashmir.

The confrontation intensified after negotiations between the government and the JAAC failed in May 2026. According to a recent fact-finding report by the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP), the AJK government subsequently proscribed the organisation under anti-terrorism legislation and imposed restrictions on movement and communications, including a prolonged suspension of mobile internet services.

The restrictions came as the region was also heading towards legislative elections, further intensifying political tensions.

Reports of firing on demonstrators

One of the most serious episodes occurred in and around Rawalakot, where protesters were preparing to march towards Muzaffarabad, the capital of Pakistan-administered Kashmir.

Reports from the ground described clashes between protesters and security personnel. Demonstrators accused Pakistani forces of indiscriminate firing, while authorities maintained that violence had erupted during confrontations with protesters.

Witnesses later spoke of bodies being carried from the streets and of injured people receiving treatment away from hospitals because of fears of arrest.

ABC News, which managed to interview residents despite the communications blackout and restrictions on foreign journalists, reported accounts from witnesses who said security personnel armed with large guns fired at unarmed people. One resident described collecting bodies and transporting them in ambulances and on people’s shoulders. Another witness claimed bullets struck buildings during the confrontation.

The precise civilian death toll remains contested.

The JAAC has alleged a substantially higher number of deaths than the government has acknowledged. Pakistani authorities have rejected the group’s figures and have accused protesters of being armed and of attacking security personnel.

The HRCP has also cautioned that it could not independently establish the full scale and circumstances of civilian casualties because access to Rawalakot, one of the major centres of violence, was restricted. The rights body has therefore called for an independent and impartial investigation into all deaths and serious injuries reported since June.

Human rights concerns deepen

The violence has raised broader questions about the use of force, civil liberties and freedom of expression in Pakistan-administered Kashmir.

The HRCP’s recent fact-finding mission said the crisis was rooted in longstanding political and socioeconomic grievances, institutional distrust and governance failures. It concluded that the increasingly confrontational response by authorities, including what it described as disproportionate use of force, had further deepened polarisation and eroded public trust.

The commission specifically called for an investigation into whether the use of force during the protests was lawful, necessary and proportionate.

It also raised concerns over the use of anti-terrorism and preventive-detention provisions against political activists. According to the HRCP, at least 147 JAAC activists were initially placed on Pakistan’s Fourth Schedule, while subsequent notifications reportedly increased the number of political workers, journalists, residents and activists brought under anti-terror legislation to at least 157.

The prolonged communications shutdown has made the situation even more difficult to verify.

Mobile internet services were suspended across parts of the territory, while restrictions on journalists limited independent reporting from areas affected by violence. The HRCP said the communication restrictions affected not only political activity but also banking, education, commerce, transport, public administration and healthcare.

Families allege disappearances and intimidation

Amid the violence, families of protesters have also alleged that some people disappeared after being injured or taken to hospitals.

ABC News reported the case of a young woman who said a relative went missing after visiting a hospital in Rawalakot. The family later heard that he may have been shot, but they said they had no confirmation of his whereabouts.

Other residents told journalists that injured protesters were reluctant to seek medical treatment because of fears that security personnel stationed around hospitals could arrest them.

Such allegations have added to public anger and contributed to a growing perception among protesters that the authorities are treating political dissent as a security threat rather than a democratic grievance.

Protesters continue to demand accountability

Despite the crackdown, demonstrations have continued in different parts of Pakistan-administered Jammu and Kashmir.

In August, protests were reported in Sudhanoti, Hajira and other areas, with demonstrators demanding fundamental rights, accountability for people killed during the unrest and an end to restrictions on civil liberties. Reports also said members of the Kashmiri diaspora held demonstrations abroad in support of the movement.

The Jammu Kashmir Human Rights Observatory has separately published a casualty record claiming that 89 civilian deaths had been verified in connection with the unrest as of August 5, while noting that verification was continuing. Such figures remain independent documentation and have not been accepted by Pakistani authorities.

The conflicting casualty figures underline the difficulty of establishing the complete picture while communications remain restricted.

Calls for an independent investigation

Human rights organisations and civil society groups have increasingly called for an independent investigation into the deaths and injuries.

The HRCP has said that both protesters and security personnel deserve accountability and that allegations against either side must be investigated through a credible and impartial process.

The rights commission also stressed that peaceful political activity should not automatically be treated as terrorism and urged authorities to ensure due process for those arrested during the unrest, including access to lawyers and courts.

For the protesters, however, the central issue remains their demand for dignity and basic economic and political rights.

The movement’s supporters argue that asking for affordable wheat, electricity, education, employment, political representation and accountable governance cannot be treated as a crime.

The government’s response, they say, has transformed an economic and political dispute into a human rights crisis.

A growing credibility crisis

The events in Pakistan-administered Jammu and Kashmir have also created a serious credibility challenge for Islamabad.

Pakistan has consistently presented itself internationally as a defender of the rights of Kashmiris. Yet the images and testimonies emerging from its own administered territory have prompted questions over how the Pakistani state responds when Kashmiris under its control themselves demand political and economic rights.

The allegations of firing on civilians, mass arrests, communication blackouts and restrictions on journalists have therefore become central to the wider debate over governance in the region.

At the same time, the authorities maintain that the security forces faced violence and that the protesters’ accounts do not present the complete picture.

The truth of individual incidents and the final casualty count will require an independent investigation capable of examining evidence from both sides.

What is increasingly clear, however, is that the crisis cannot be resolved through force alone.

The protests have evolved from demands over the price of food and electricity into a much broader challenge over political representation, accountability, civil liberties and the relationship between the people of Pakistan-administered Kashmir and the authorities in Islamabad.

As demonstrators continue to demand justice and accountability, the central question remains whether the authorities will choose a political solution and transparent investigation—or continue to treat popular dissent primarily as a security problem.

For families who say they have lost loved ones, and for protesters who continue to take to the streets, the demand is straightforward: basic rights, dignity, representation and accountability—not bullets.