PoK: Awami Action Committee rejects notification regarding wheat subsidy, vow to continue protest

Gilgit-Baltistan [PoK], January 30 : The Awami Action Committee has rejected the ongoing notification regarding wheat subsidy and called it vague. The Awami Action Committee has announced that they will continue to hold a sit-in, Pakistan vernacular media Daily K2 reported.

On the fourth day of the sit-in, thousands of people held a protest at Ittihad Chowk. Awami Action Committee chief commander Ehsan Ali Advocate, in his speech, said that no negotiations have been held with the Awami Action Committee and added that the notification being shown is a fraud.

He said that the Awami Action Committee has come up with a 15-point charter of demand, not for a sack of wheat, and the people of Baltistan have also stipulated that the previous prices of wheat should be restored first, then negotiations would take place, according to Daily K2 report.

Ehsan Ali Advocate said the negotiations will not be on one point but on fifteen points and we demand that the government stop using these tactics. On Tuesday, a large rally of people from Ishkoman participated in the rally, Daily K2 reported.

Similarly, the people of Astor and Diamer will also participate in the sit-in and the people of Nagar are also attending the sit-in, the report said.

Awami Action Committee Coordinator Fida Hussain said that no negotiations have been held with the Awami Action Committee. However, negotiations have been held with those who were the facilitators and we have no connection with these facilitators. Hussain stated that the Awami Action Committee continues to hold sit-in.

Anjuman Tajran General Secretary Masudur Rahman said that their main demand is the complete abolition of the Finance Act, for which they have shut down businesses and suffered losses. Rahman asserted that they are not going to end the sit-in, according to Daily K2 report.

The sit-in protests continued in Gilgit-Baltistan over the issue of the Finance Bill, Revenue Act, and Health Card, Pakistani vernacular media, Daily K2 reported.

After heavy protests against wheat prices, the first round of negotiations between the protestors and the authorities in PoK's Gilgit-Baltistan, both parties agreed on restoring the old prices of wheat.

A five-member negotiation committee was formed under the chairmanship of Gilgit Baltistan Chief Minister Haji Gulbarkhan. The first round of negotiations between the government and the dharna leaders started late on Sunday night and continued till 2:30 am (local time).

Other protestors who couldn't reach there also joined the meeting via video conferencing. In the initial phase, the Pakistani authorities announced restoring the old prices of wheat, but backed down, on the Finance Bill, Revenue Act, Health Card and other issues. It was agreed to continue the negotiation process, according to vernacular media.

In the negotiations, it was decided that the wheat quota for Gilgit-Baltistan would be 15 lakh sacks. However, the Awami Action Committee Gilgit has announced that they won't be ending the sit-in until the Finance Bill Revenue Act is abolished and the health card is restored, Daily K2 report.

Late on Sunday night, the talks between the Pakistan government and protestors in Gilgit Baltistan were attended by provincial ministers Fathullah Shamsul Haque, Lon Haji Rahmat Khaliq, Iman Shah Sarwar Shah, Hussain Shah and others on behalf of the government.

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