AJK PM grants land ownership rights to over 1,000 LoC-displaced families in Janyal

MUZAFFARABAD: Azad Jammu and Kashmir Prime Minister Raja Faisal Mumtaz Rathore on Sunday announced ownership rights for more than 1,000 families displaced from the Line of Control and settled on state land in Janyal, near Mirpur.

The announcement was made at a ceremony held to formalise the transfer of land rights to the internally displaced persons. According to the details shared at the event, most of the families had moved from the adjoining districts of Bhimber and Kotli after cross-LoC shelling in 1998 and had been living on unoccupied government land in the Janyal area since 2006.

Addressing the gathering, the prime minister paid tribute to the affected families for the hardships they had endured after leaving their homes in the face of what he described as unprovoked and indiscriminate shelling along the LoC.

"From today, you are the rightful owners of the land where you have been living for years," he told the beneficiaries, while congratulating them on the transfer. Rathore also announced that a dispensary would be established in the area.

Reference to earlier precedent

The prime minister said a similar step had been taken during the previous Pakistan Peoples Party government led by former prime minister Chaudhry Abdul Majeed, when ownership rights were granted to refugees settled in Khaliqabad and nearby localities. He said the notification issued for Janyal followed that precedent.

He also said the PPP was a party of ordinary people and believed in providing bread, clothing and shelter. Referring to public confidence in politics, he said trust had weakened but maintained that the PPP had worked to narrow that gap. He added that the party’s politics aimed to provide all possible facilities to the people and that it would continue working towards that objective.

Political remarks and development announcements

Rathore expressed confidence that the PPP would perform successfully in the 2026 elections. "Today we have come to give you your rights; next time we will come to seek your vote," he told the gathering, adding that intention held fundamental importance in politics and that God rewarded sincere intent.

Earlier, while addressing another gathering in Kharri Sharif, the AJK prime minister announced a number of development measures for the town. These included granting Kharri Sharif tehsil status and upgrading the Jatlan police post as well as a girls’ degree college.

Taking aim at rival party PML-N, he said its leadership was in disagreement over the prime minister’s office, while the PPP was engaged in what he called a practical struggle to protect people’s rights. "The government has not even fully begun its work in the field, and the opponents are already panicking; this behaviour shows they have mentally conceded defeat even before the elections," he said.