Former AJK PM Sardar Tanveer Ilyas’ convoy comes under fire in Rawalakot, guard killed

ISLAMABAD: Former Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) prime minister Sardar Tanveer Ilyas’ convoy came under fire in the Tain-Dhalkot area on Friday, leaving one security guard dead and several others injured, according to officials.

AJK Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Raja Akmal confirmed that authorities had received reports of firing on Ilyas’ convoy and said an investigation was underway. He added that those responsible for the attack would be identified and brought to justice.

According to a statement issued by Ilyas’ spokesperson on Facebook, the former prime minister was travelling from Islamabad to Rawalakot for a two-day visit when unidentified assailants opened fire on his convoy in the Tain-Dhalkot area.

The spokesperson said Muhammad Asif, a member of Ilyas’ security team, was killed in the attack, while several other people travelling in the convoy sustained injuries.

The incident comes just days before elections for the 53-member Azad Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly, scheduled for July 27.

Earlier this month, Tanveer Ilyas announced his decision to join the Istehkam-e-Pakistan Party (IPP) after meeting IPP President Abdul Aleem Khan and Minister of State for Overseas Pakistanis Awn Chaudhry.

Read More: PIA employee liabilities cross Rs30 billion ahead of privatisation deal

The move followed his resignation from the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP-AJK chapter) after negotiations over election tickets failed, a development political observers described as a setback for the party ahead of the regional polls.

The attack also comes amid heightened tensions in AJK, where authorities have reported an increase in violence linked to protests organised by the banned Jammu Kashmir Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC).

The AJK government declared JAAC a proscribed organisation under the Anti-Terrorism Act on June 5, accusing it of involvement in terrorist activities. The ban was imposed ahead of the group’s planned protest demanding the abolition of 12 legislative seats reserved for refugees from Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) who migrated to Pakistan after 1947.