The government of Azad Jammu and Kashmir on Friday declared the Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC) a proscribed organisation and placed it under the First Schedule of the region’s anti-terrorism act.

The notification by AJK’s Home Department said the group is “engaged in terrorism” and has acted in a manner “prejudicial to peace and security” of the state.

It further stated that JAAC is involved in “creating anarchy in the state by intimidating public, promoting hatred and creating a sense of insecurity in society and public at large etc”.

“Now, therefore, in exercise of powers conferred under section 12 of Azad Jammu and Kashmir Anti-Terrorism Act, 2014, the President, Azad Jammu and Kashmir has accorded approval to list the Jammu Kashmir Joint Awami Action Committee (JK-JAAC), also known by names such as Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC) and Awami Action Committee (AAC) etc, in the First Schedule of ATA, 2014, Proscribed Organization for the purpose of the said Act.”

Persistent avoidance of institutional dialogue and refusal to engage with a designated implementation committee have led to accusations that the group is pursuing tactics aimed at disrupting the electoral process in AJK.

The criticism intensified as JAAC continued to call for a wheel-jam strike on June 9 — the same date the AJK Election Commission has scheduled for candidates to begin filing nomination papers for the upcoming July 27 general elections.

Earlier today, the AJK government urged outsiders to avoid travelling to the region and asked current visitors to leave immediately.

The group’s latest protest call centres on a highly contentious demand to abolish the 12 seats in the region’s Legislative Assembly that are reserved for refugees from Indian-occupied Jammu and Kashmir who settled in mainland Pakistan after 1947.

JAAC alleged that these seats are frequently used by mainstream Pakistani political parties to influence the formation of governments in Muzaffarabad.

On Thursday, the AJK Legislative Assembly strongly defended the status quo, backing the refugee seats and calling for elections to proceed on schedule.

Anxious to prevent a repeat of past bloodshed, Islamabad dispatched federal paramilitary forces to reinforce the region’s thinly stretched police force.

On Thursday, AJK Inspector General of Police Captain (retired) Liaqat Ali Malik formally requested 14,000 additional personnel from the federal government to secure the territory from June 7 to June 21.

Video footage circulating on Friday showed convoys of security personnel entering Muzaffarabad, suggesting that reinforcements were already being moved into the region ahead of the planned strike.

“Our foremost responsibility is to protect public and private life and property, and the police will act in accordance with their mandate,” Malik told Dawn earlier.

Meanwhile, speculation mounted on social media that authorities might suspend internet and mobile data services, as they had during the weeklong JAAC strike in September-October last year.

The previous shutdown had severely disrupted academic activities, online businesses and freelance work, while also hampering communication by rendering internet-based calling and messaging services inaccessible across the region.

Separately, the University of AJK on Friday postponed its Spring 2026 term examinations, scheduled to commence on June 8, until further orders in view of the JAAC strike call.