People of PoJK being treated as aliens, says defence expert

Defence expert PK Sehgal said that people from Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK) are being treated as “aliens.”

He said that a huge amount of electricity is generated in PoJK. However, the beneficiaries are either China or Pakistan’s Punjab province.

Speaking to ANI, PK Sehgal said that people have held protests in PoJK despite Pakistani police, rangers and paramilitary forces firing on them. He stated that PoK activists have asked India to help them out as far as the current situation is concerned in PoJK.

On being asked about protests in PoJK and activists asking India to support them, he said, “There is massive protests against Pakistan. People in that area feel that they’ve been. They are virtually. They consider themselves as occupied. They are not being given the same treatment as the rest of the people of Pakistan. They are being treated as aliens. Inflation is skyrocketing. Fuel is not available. Electricity prices have touched the sky.”

“A huge amount of electricity is generated in that area but the beneficiaries are either the Chinese or the Pakistani province of Punjab. Under the circumstances, people of that area are protesting in a very major way in eight to ten cities and this protests have been going on for several days. Despite the fact that the Pakistanis have used the Pakistan police as well as the rangers and the paramilitary forces even opened fire on them. The protests are going from bad to worse. As far as India is concerned. They (PoK activists) have asked India to intervene and help them out as far as the current situation is concerned, exactly the same way as we did in Bangladesh.”

PK Sehgal noted that Indian ministers, including External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, have made statements on PoJK. He rejected the Pakistani army’s claims that India was intervening in the matter. He said that people in PoJK are fed up with Pakistan and want to become part of India.

Defence expert said, “The situation is entirely different. India has made quite a few statements, Jaishankar, our External Affairs Minister, said there had been a parliamentary resolution in the 1990s that said that PoK is, was and will continue to be part of India. The question of merger doesn’t arise as it is part and parcel of India and sooner than later it will become a reality.”

“Our Defence Minister Rajnath has also made a similar statement. Given these statements with the Indian leaders, the Pakistani dispensation in the Pakistan army is furious as they are trying to tell the world that India is interfering whereas India is not interfering. India is only making statements about the fact that conditions in Pakistan are from bad to worse in PoK because of their own doing and because of their own doing its people have been fed up with them and they want to now come and become part of India,” he added.

Intense protests and violence, which continued for several days, led to the deaths of three people in Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK). The protestors announced on Tuesday to call off the protests after the Pakistani government accepted their demands and announced a huge relief package, ARY News reported.

At least one man was killed and two others were injured as clashes between the protestors and law enforcement agencies once again erupted in Muzaffarabad on Monday. During the clashes, a cop was also killed, while several others were injured.

Another defence expert, SP Sinha, echoed similar views on PoJK. He said that Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has understood that PoJK is out of his hands and is fooling people by providing a small amount of aid.

SP Sinha said, “It is clearly visible to the Prime Minister of Pakistan that the time has come that PoK is out of his hands. This is his fear. They are so unrighteous and are doing so much injustice to PoK. Wherever electricity is going in Pakistan, what is its source? Where is the power supply coming from? Where is the water coming from PoK.”

“And the region, which is providing all these things, is getting charged electricity at a higher rate, it is complete abuse and injustice. Water is being taken from PoK and given subsidies but electricity is given to people in PoK at higher rates. That is why there is rebellion in PoK. Now, when Pakistan PM Shehbaz Sharif is afraid that they are losing PoK, he is fooling them (the people of PoK) by providing a small amount of aid,” he added.

Calling on the people of PoJK to not fall into the trap of the Pakistan PM, he said, “I want to tell the people of PoK that they should not fall into the trap of this small aid. As soon as you calm down, he will start playing the same game again. This is a small dose being given; you may become a little unconscious, just do not get into its trap.”

He stated that PoJK is part of India and Maharaja Hari Singh had given it to India. He said that PoJK is India’s property. He even blamed former PM Jawahar Lal Nehru for losing PoJK.

“PoK is part of India. On October 26, 1947, Maharaja Hari Singh signed the Instrument of Accession…It was Nehru’s strategic blunder that we lost it (PoK). There were weak governments at that time. Today, it is a strong government. And I think the time has just come that it (PoK) will be ours, it is our property. Maharaja Ji had given it to us, so whatever is ours, we should have it, from the legal point of view, from the moral point of view, from the social system point of view, from all the points of view, it is ours and it should become ours,” he said.

As violent protests and a shutter-down strike in Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK) came to a halt following Islamabad’s announcement of an immediate grant of PKR 23 billion to address demands for fair electricity pricing and subsidised wheat flour, the UK-based United Kashmir People’s National Party (UKPNP) issued a statement reaffirming the region’s long-standing grievances.

In the statement, the UKPNP highlighted the decades-long denial of fundamental human rights, citing injustice, inequality, and systematic plundering of natural resources as enduring issues.

The party condemned the eruption of violence, attributing it to the deployment of paramilitary forces such as the Punjab Constabulary and Frontier Constabulary, notorious for their alleged inhumane actions.

The UKPNP voiced its full endorsement of the peaceful struggle led by the Awami Action Committee, asserting its pro-people and pro-peace stance. It vehemently rejected accusations of foreign financing, dismissing alleged links with India, Taliban, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI), Baloch Liberation Army, or any purported Jewish lobby.

Shabir Choudhry, President of the Foreign Affairs Committee, UKPNP, condemned the dissemination of fake propaganda by Pakistani politicians, secret agencies, and media outlets. He emphasised the loss of credibility in such allegations, citing historical instances of baseless accusations against dissenting voices.