Every society must carefully distinguish between legitimate dissent and reckless agitation. Protest may well be the language of the unheard, but when it descends into violence, vandalism, and slogans against the very state that sustains you, it ceases to be a struggle for rights and becomes an act of betrayal. The unrest in Azad Jammu and Kashmir illustrated this descent with striking clarity.
What could have been resolved through dialogue and patient negotiation has instead been transformed into a spectacle of disruption, chaos, and ingratitude. The Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC), which proudly declares itself apolitical, has in reality led citizens into direct confrontation with the state. The tragic loss of policemen and civilian lives is the inevitable result of such reckless leadership. Ordinary citizens were misled into believing that their grievances required confrontation rather than constructive engagement. Responsibility for this outcome lies not only with those who blocked roads and raised hostile slogans, but also with those who incited them, trading the language of negotiation for the theatre of agitation.
The demands raised by the Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC) are not unfamiliar. Calls for hydel royalties, abolition of migrant seats, and curbing elite perks have circulated for years. But instead of pursuing these issues through dialogue, the JAAC chose confrontation. Strikes, lockdowns, and marches paralyzed life for days, punishing small shopkeepers, daily wagers, and students, the very people the movement claims to represent while leaving elites largely untouched.
The irony of a ‘rights movement’ that robs its own people of livelihood and education is glaring. More alarming, however, has been the descent into dangerous symbolism. Reports of protesters chanting ‘Pakistan Murdabad’ and tearing down the national flag cannot be brushed aside as mere anger. They reveal an undercurrent of separatism and ingratitude. If this agitation were truly about civic rights, it would have remained anchored in justice and governance. Instead, it has veered into an anti-state campaign, eroding its legitimacy and exposing troubling motives.
This hypocrisy stands out even more when set against Pakistan’s financial lifeline to AJK. Every year, Islamabad funnels over Rs 200 billion into the territory, funding salaries, pensions, subsidies, and development projects. Without this support, the AJK government would collapse overnight. More tellingly, AJK residents enjoy privileges unavailable to most Pakistanis: electricity at just Rs 3 per unit compared to nearly Rs 40 nationwide, alongside subsidized groceries and other essentials. These extraordinary concessions, sustained by the Pakistani taxpayer, are rarely acknowledged. Instead, they are met with hostility and slogans against the very state that keeps the system afloat. This is not a fight for fairness. It is political blackmail disguised as agitation, one that exploits the goodwill of Pakistan while holding ordinary people hostage to chaos.
History will not remember how loudly ‘Murdabad’ was shouted; it will remember whether the people of AJK chose to squander their future in reckless agitation or build it in partnership with Pakistan. The choice is theirs, but the consequences will be shared by all. In times such as these, wisdom lies not in reckless slogans but in responsible nation-building.
To grasp the contradiction, history offers clarity. When the Tarbela Dam displaced 83 villages, including those near Ayub Khan’s hometown, the victims received no special resettlement and still await fair compensation. Yet, when Britain sought labour in the 1960s, it was the Mirpuris displaced by Mangla Dam who were granted preferential visas to the UK. Today, entire British towns are filled by this diaspora, living far more comfortably than most Pakistanis. Treated as the ‘favoured children’ of the state, some now repay that generosity with hostility, even tearing down Pakistan’s flag.
The call for a referendum by certain elements is another reckless gamble. AJK’s economy, infrastructure, and security are so interwoven with Pakistan that any attempt at separation would expose its fragility overnight. If the people of AJK genuinely seek independence, then honesty demands that those who have spread across Pakistan in search of business and livelihoods return to their homeland, sustain themselves without subsidies, and face the stark reality of self-reliance. Conversely, if the majority chooses to remain with Pakistan, then the era of political blackmail must end. AJK cannot forever enjoy the privileges of autonomy while burdening the federation with costs. The time has come for Pakistan to resolve the constitutional ambiguity of AJK. Just as India integrated Jammu and Kashmir into its federation, Pakistan too should integrate AJK as a full-fledged province. With a chief minister and governor, equal representation in the NFC Award, and legislative authority aligned with the constitution, AJK could operate like any other province.
The lesson from this crisis is therefore unmistakable: agitation without responsibility is not empowerment, it is self-destruction. The JAAC’s theatrics may have brought temporary attention, but they have eroded the credibility of AJK’s demands, strained its bond with Pakistan, and placed its own citizens at risk. Slogans may win headlines, but they do not build futures. Instead, they deepen wounds, sow mistrust, and invite consequences that cannot easily be undone. AJK’s path forward cannot be paved with ingratitude, opportunism, and separatist theatrics. It must be built on dialogue, reform, and mutual respect. Pakistan, for its part, must learn to act with firmness as well as fairness: supporting genuine civic rights but refusing to tolerate blackmail disguised as protest.
History will not remember how loudly ‘Murdabad’ was shouted; it will remember whether the people of AJK chose to squander their future in reckless agitation or build it in partnership with Pakistan. The choice is theirs, but the consequences will be shared by all. In times such as these, wisdom lies not in reckless slogans but in responsible nation-building.
