MEA Calls for International Accountability Over Police Crackdown in Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir

India's Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on June 9, 2026, urged the international community to hold Pakistan accountable for the deaths and injuries resulting from a police crackdown on protesters in Rawalkot, a town in Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir (PoK). MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal, speaking at the weekly press briefing, described the response by Pakistani authorities as severe and characterised it as a human rights abuse.

The protests in PoK were triggered on June 5, 2026, when residents across Muzaffarabad, Rawalkot, and Mirpur began demonstrating against steep increases in the prices of essential commodities such as flour and electricity. The demonstrations were organised under the banner of the Jammu Kashmir Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC), a grassroots organisation founded in 2023 that had previously mobilised residents around similar economic grievances including wheat subsidies and electricity tariff reform. Protesters also raised demands relating to electoral representation, specifically calling for the removal of twelve seats reserved for refugees in the legislative assembly elections scheduled for July 27, 2026.

The Pakistani authorities responded by moving to ban the JAAC, declaring it a terrorist organisation, and detaining several of its members ahead of the planned mobilisation. Security forces subsequently opened fire on protesters, killing several individuals and injuring many more. An internet blackout was also imposed on parts of the region. MEA spokesperson Jaiswal noted a pattern of misinformation being spread through social media and stated: "We continue to see a pattern of fake news and videos emanating from Pakistan. It is a desperate attempt by Pakistan to cover up its own failings and deflect attention from its human rights abuses."

India's official position, consistently maintained, is that the entire region of Jammu and Kashmir — including the area currently under Pakistani control — is an integral part of India. The Indian government does not recognise Pakistan's administrative claim over PoK and uses the term Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir (PoK) or Pakistan-Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (POJK) in all official communications. The MEA's statement on June 9 reflects this position while also highlighting the humanitarian dimension of the ongoing unrest.

The crackdown drew international attention beyond India. A group of British Members of Parliament, members of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Kashmir in the House of Commons, wrote to the British Foreign Secretary on June 6, 2026, expressing concern about the welfare of British Kashmiris with family ties in the region and calling for dialogue over confrontation. PoK has previously witnessed similar protests, including a round of unrest in 2025 that resulted in nine deaths among both protesters and police personnel.