Muzaffarabad Placed Under Section 144, Internet Suspended and Rangers Deployed Across AJK as Tensions Rise

Azad Jammu and Kashmir’s capital, Muzaffarabad, has been placed under Section 144, with the Deputy Commissioner formally issuing a notification prohibiting the assembly of four or more individuals at any single location, as the region braces under mounting civil unrest.

Alongside the imposition of the security order, internet services have been suspended throughout AJK, though mobile phone connectivity remains active. The burial of Shahzaib, a member of the outlawed Jammu Kashmir Joint Awami Action Committee (JKJAAC), was carried out after he was fatally shot in a firing incident in Rawalakot.

The JKJAAC has directly accused law enforcement agencies of carrying out the shooting. However, the official response from authorities differed sharply — Commissioner Rawalakot Sardar Waheed stated that police did not fire at the vehicle and were not present at the scene before the incident took place.

Tensions in Rawalakot remain elevated, with Rangers personnel stationed at sensitive locations across the city. In response to Shahzaib’s killing, a JKJAAC member confirmed that traders and transporters have launched a widespread strike in Muzaffarabad and other parts of Kashmir in protest.

A government official confirmed that Rangers and Frontier Corps personnel have been deployed at critical and sensitive sites in Muzaffarabad and surrounding areas. Among the installations under guard are the Supreme Court building, the Legislative Assembly, the Presidential House, and the Prime Minister’s House — underscoring the gravity of the security situation on the ground.