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ISLAMABAD — Officials in Pakistan-administered Kashmir on Tuesday accused an outlawed political group of attempting to sabotage elections for the region’s constitutional assembly, while also alleging that militants from the Pakistani Taliban infiltrated weekslong protests.
The accusations came a day after clashes with security forces killed one paramilitary officer and wounded several others.
The violence erupted when armed, masked protesters at a sit-in opened fire on police and security personnel deployed to secure polling, the regional government and police said.
There were unconfirmed reports that several protesters were killed or wounded, but officials did not immediately confirm any civilian casualties.
Voting in the disputed Himalayan region of Kashmir, which is divided between India and Pakistan and claimed in its entirety by both countries, began Monday and is being held in phases through Aug. 10.
The now-weeks-old protest encampment has overshadowed the election, with residents reporting low voter turnout in Monday’s first phase, when polling was held for several assembly seats in the city of Mirpur.
At a news conference in Muzaffarabad, the capital of Pakistan-administered Kashmir, government spokesman Mohammad Rashid Hanif alleged that the outlawed Joint Awami Action Committee, or JAAC, sought to derail the elections.
He said a “significant number” of Fitna al-Khawarij, the term Islamabad uses for members of the Pakistani Taliban, were also among the protesters.
On Tuesday at a news conference in Islamabad, Information Minister Attaullah Tarar and Deputy Interior Minister Talal Chaudhry said the ongoing sit-in was no longer a peaceful protest, alleging that armed militants had joined the demonstrators and posed a threat to public order.
They said authorities would soon take action to restore order and ensure conditions for a free, fair and peaceful vote.
Security forces were said to be responding in self-defense while exercising maximum restraint.
The regional government banned the JAAC recently, citing concerns over public order and security, and arrested dozens of its followers.
It is notorious for violent protests.
The dispute escalated in early June after the region’s Supreme Court ruled the refugee seats are constitutionally protected and cannot be abolished without a constitutional amendment.
Hanif, the government spokesman, urged residents to distance themselves from the protesters, alleging that armed militants had infiltrated the demonstrations and were using civilians as shields.
He said authorities would continue operations to disperse the protest camps and restore law and order.
Regional deputy Police Chief Irfan Masood Kashfi said armed men involved in the unrest were carrying weapons, including Kalashnikov assault rifles and that authorities had received intelligence that snipers were also being used.
Kashfi also said authorities arrested an armed suspect in Rawalakot and seized what he described as an assault rifle, alleging the suspect had recently arrived from abroad and received sniper training.
Officials also played video recordings of two detained men who appeared to confess to taking part in the violence.
Source: Manilatimes
