Updated by Faith Barbara N Ruhinda at 1219 EAT on Thursday 30 July 2026

Watchdogs have raised concerns over reports of deadly clashes during regional elections in Pakistan-administered Kashmir, where a banned activist group boycotted the vote and organised protests.

The clashes between police and protesters earlier this week left more than 30 people dead, according to leaders of the Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC), an alliance that has opposed the elections.

In a video statement released on Wednesday and shared by Arab News Pakistan, JAAC committee member Sardar Umar Nazir claimed that 20 supporters of the group were killed during a march on Monday, the first day of voting.

Nazir also reported that at least 10 other protesters were killed the following day in towns including Rawalakot and Mirpur, as well as in other areas during sit-in demonstrations.

“Our demand was peaceful. It was peaceful. We tried to keep it non-violent, and bullets were fired at it,” Nazir said in the video statement.

Pakistani authorities, however, said one security personnel member was killed and five others injured during clashes on Monday.

Rights group Amnesty International described reports of the use of lethal force against protesters in Pakistan-administered Kashmir as “disturbing” and called for an independent investigation.

Pear Pandya, a senior analyst at conflict monitor Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED), said the violence “is bound to overshadow the legitimacy of the entire electoral exercise.”

The first round of voting, held on Monday in the districts of Mirpur, Kotli and Bhimber, will be followed by two more rounds scheduled for August 2 and August 10.
Pakistan’s ruling party, the Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) (PML-N), won nine of the 13 seats contested in Monday’s vote.

The JAAC was banned by the local government in June under “anti-terrorism laws”, triggering deadly protests in Pakistan-administered Kashmir.
Since then, banking services, roads and internet connectivity have been largely disrupted, limiting the flow of information from the region.

Pakistani officials have defended the crackdown, alleging that armed and India-backed fighters infiltrated the protests. India has rejected similar allegations in the past.

Amnesty International has described the ban on JAAC as unlawful, arguing that it does not justify authorities using “deadly violence against protesters.”

The rights group has also called on Pakistani authorities to “restore all communications access and allow media and independent observers into the area,” according to Isabelle Lassee, its acting regional director for South Asia.

JAAC supporters argue that the contested seats are used by major Pakistani political parties to influence the composition of the regional parliament in their favour, despite many of those representatives living outside the region.

Political analyst Hasan Askari said the PML-N would likely require the backing of some of the 12 representatives to form a regional government.

“But when their government is dependent on those 12 controversial seats, how would it be able to find a solution for this issue?” Askari told Reuters.

Even among candidates who did not boycott Monday’s vote, the results faced challenges, with rival parties accusing each other of ballot box theft and vote rigging.

-Aljazeera

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