Islamabad: Jamaat-e-Jammu Kashmir Peoples Party leader Sardar Asad Ibrahim Khan has urged the authorities to find an immediate and peaceful solution to the Azad Kashmir crisis, saying that the protection of human life must remain the top priority at every stage of the dispute.
Speaking at a press conference in Islamabad alongside party president Syed Fazl Karim Advocate and central secretary information Sardar Naveed Hayat Khan, he said the ongoing political and public unrest in Azad Kashmir should not be allowed to turn into confrontation. He stressed that the people raising demands for their rights should not be pushed into an environment where tensions deepen and mistrust spreads further.
Sardar Asad Ibrahim said the situation in Azad Kashmir is deeply concerning and warned that its impact could extend beyond the region itself, including on the wider Kashmir issue. He said his party’s politics continues the legacy and struggle of the late Ghazi-e-Millat Sardar Muhammad Ibrahim Khan and Sardar Khalid Ibrahim Khan, whose vision he described as rooted in the political aspirations of the Kashmiri people.
He recalled that the resolution for accession to Pakistan was passed on July 19, 1947, at Sardar Muhammad Ibrahim Khan’s residence in Srinagar, calling it a defining moment in the political direction of the Kashmiri movement. According to him, any present-day debate on the region must be handled with responsibility, sensitivity and respect for that historical context.
Commenting on the current unrest, he said the public movement initially began with demands related to flour, electricity and other basic rights, but the failure to address those concerns in time made the issue more complicated. He said agreements had previously been reached with the action committee, yet the same groups were later described as banned or even labelled as terrorists, which he termed an unfortunate approach.
He added that any person found violating the law should face legal action, but branding everyone involved in a rights movement as a terrorist is neither fair nor helpful. Such steps, he said, can create misunderstandings between the people of Pakistan and Azad Kashmir and ultimately give advantage to hostile forces.
Sardar Asad Ibrahim said the responsibility for resolving the current crisis rests primarily with the Azad Kashmir government. He said repeated changes in government, political instability and unserious political conduct over the past few years have weakened public confidence and made governance more difficult.
He further noted that Pakistan and Kashmir are linked through history, ideology and emotion, and that this relationship must not be harmed. He also expressed concern over certain statements from some quarters that raise questions about Azad Kashmir’s constitutional identity and the international position on the Kashmir dispute.
Speaking at the same press conference, Syed Fazl Karim Advocate said reports of food shortages and disruptions in the supply of essential commodities in Poonch district and other areas are worrying. He called on the government to take urgent measures to ease the hardships faced by the public.
He said that adopting an anti-Pakistan narrative in the name of a rights movement is condemnable, while the use of force and confrontation is also not a solution. He said all sides should show patience, restraint and seriousness, and work through dialogue to resolve the matter.
The leaders expressed hope that negotiations between the government and the relevant stakeholders in the coming days would lead to a peaceful settlement of the Azad Kashmir crisis, helping restore normal life in the region and spare the public from further difficulties.
