PPP Chairperson Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari said on Wednesday that the situation in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) since last month was “very concerning”, and the longer it persisted, the more harm would be caused to the Kashmir cause and Pakistan’s reputation. Bilawal expressed these views while addressing his party’s office bearers and ticket holders in AJK, where he arrived on Tuesday for an unscheduled visit ahead of July 27 elections in the region. AJK has been seized by protests and deadly clashes between law enforcers and protesters from the recently proscribed Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC) ahead of the polls. The matter at the centre of the tensions is JAAC’s demand for the abolition of 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. Addressing his party’s workers against this backdrop, Bilawal said, “If someone uses inappropriate language against Kashmiris, we will be heartbroken.” He added, “And if someone speaks up against our army, we can’t tolerate that as well.” He emphasised that Pakistan’s armed forces, which had defeated India during Marka-i-Haq last year, were their “red line”. Turning his attention to the present situation in AJK, he said it was surely “very concerning”. “The longer it persists, the more harm will be caused to the Kashmir cause and Pakistan’s reputation and position,” he added. At this point, he also highlighted the global situation, saying “big changes are taking place and conspiracies are under way globally”. And in this situation, the role of Pakistan and Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir was “significant”, he said. He continued, “Pakistan’s role, our field marshal’s role is before you in this situation; Pakistan is playing its role as Israel conspires against Iran; Pakistan has responded to India’s attacks; […] Pakistan and its armed forces are responding to terrorists sent by India via Afghanistan to carry out attacks in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan; entire Pakistan is ready to respond to Modi as he weaponises water.” He said that we should understand that before the war on Iran, the Indian prime minister was in Israel, and both Israeli and Indian leaders were looking for opportunities to hinder Pakistan’s efforts, as it was the only one thwarting their conspiracies in the Muslim ummah. “Everyone should think: Pakistani politicians, Kashmiri politicians, political workers, a common man and people who are protesting should think about using words responsibly, so that any enemy of Pakistan cannot use them against it,” he stressed. He said that we all were trying to resolve the issue of AJK “politically”. “On the one hand, the state is not ready to surrender, and it is justified, in this aspect, that no one can blackmail the state, and on the other hand, different demands and issues appear; even today, we will try to find a middle way,” the PPP chairman said. More to follow