August 10, 2026
By Hashir Ahsan
ISLAMABAD
As protests by the Jammu and Kashmir Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC) ripple out across the region, elections are taking place at the same time in the Poonch division.
Meanwhile, the government has added 10 more names to the Fourth Schedule over alleged links to the banned JAAC. The notification includes Ejaz Ahmed Khan, Uzra Alam, Muhammad Zuhaib Khan, Muhammad Nabeel Tabussum, Zeeshan Ahmed, Raja Waseem Sabir, Raja Muhammad Mansoor Khan, Qaiser Kaleem, Hamza Nasir, and Nabeela Arshad. Of these, two are from Bagh, one from Muzaffarabad, two from Poonch, and one from Sudhnoti — all accused of having ties to the banned JAAC. Copies of the notification have been sent to the Ministry of Interior, NADRA, NACTA, the FIA, the Chief Secretary of Azad Kashmir, police officials, commissioners, deputy commissioners, and other relevant departments. The notification doesn’t specify any individual allegations or activities against these 10 people.
Being placed on the Fourth Schedule brings several restrictions: for instance the person must get prior permission from their local police station before leaving their permanent residence or traveling elsewhere, must submit their original passport to police or relevant authorities, and is barred from traveling abroad. They’re also required to report to a designated police station or the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) at set times each month. Their bank accounts can be frozen, and financial transactions or credit are restricted. Any weapons licenses are cancelled and weapons must be surrendered.
Elections under the shadow of violence and protests
The third phase of elections is underway in Azad Kashmir, with polling taking place in the two districts of Bagh and Haveli in Poonch division — voters are casting ballots in 3 constituencies in Bagh district and 1 in Haveli district. Together, these two districts have 460,371 registered voters, with 803 polling stations and 1,254 polling booths set up across the 4 constituencies.
Detail pf the polling stations are as follows: In LA-14, there are 214 polling stations, of which 41 have been declared highly sensitive. LA-15 has 211 polling stations, 53 of them highly sensitive. LA-16 has 186 polling stations, 61 of them highly sensitive. Voter numbers stand at 121,199 in LA-14, 114,937 in LA-15, and 106,721 in LA-16. Haveli district’s single constituency, LA-17, has 117,514 registered voters. Tight security arrangements have been made at polling stations in both districts.
However JAAC has called on people to boycott the elections. Polling in two other districts of Poonch division had earlier been postponed by the Election Commission a few days ago because of JAAC protests, and no new date has been announced yet for those.
So far, two phases of the Azad Kashmir elections have been completed. Based on results to date, PML-N is in a position to form the government with 24 seats — a simple majority in the Azad Kashmir Assembly requires 27 seats, and PML-N had won 23 seats in the first two phases. The PPP is currently second with 10 seats. No independent candidate has won a seat in the first two phases.
In Mirpur division’s 13 seats, PML-N won 9 and PPP won 4. In Muzaffarabad division’s 9 seats, PML-N took 5 and PPP took 4. Among the 12 seats reserved for refugees, PML-N won 10 and PPP won 2. In total, elections have been held for 34 seats of the Azad Kashmir Assembly so far. Polling for the remaining 4 seats in Poonch division will be completed today, while the date for elections on the remaining 7 seats will be announced later.