14 Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC) activists were killed, and more than 24 were injured in major clashes with law-enforcement personnel during the first phase of elections for the so-called legislative assembly in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).
Law enforcement authorities alleged that the JAAC activists opened fire on security personnel, which led to the clashes. Meanwhile, the authorities have disputed the death toll. Notably, JAAC remains a banned outfit in PoK.
The JAAC has been staging a series of protests in PoK since last month over 12 disputed seats in the so-called regional legislative assembly. It alleges that the establishment manoeuvres these seats to install a prime minister of its choice.
India on July 14 had described the protests in PoK as a "direct consequence" of Islamabad's decades-long "systemic exploitation and administrative oppression" in areas under its "forcible" occupation and criticised the police brutality on the protesters.
India maintains that the entire Union Territories of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh are integral and inalienable parts of it.
As the first phase of polls was held on Monday on 13 seats, the JAAC held a long march from Rawalakot towards the regional capital Muzaffarabad.
The JAAC claimed that its activists were killed when law-enforcement personnel opened fire on participants of the long march.
The party's claim could not be independently verified.
JAAC core committee member Abid Shaheen told the BBC that around a dozen activists had been killed and more than 20 wounded during clashes on Monday.
Another committee member, Imtiaz Aslam, put the death toll at 14 and said those killed included Usman Nazir, younger brother of JAAC founding member Umar Nazir. Shaheen claimed the bodies had been taken to a medical camp near Drek, where the JAAC has been staging a sit-in for one-and-a-half months.
The JAAC also denied that its marchers were armed, saying they carried only sticks.
The claim was rejected by PoK police chief Captain (retd.) Liaquat Ali Malik, who alleged that protesters possessed modern weapons and were targeting security personnel.
Malik said the reported deaths could not be verified until bodies were recovered, officially recorded or brought to hospitals for post-mortem examinations.
He recalled that during an operation against the JAAC last month, the group had claimed 400 deaths, whereas five fatalities had been recorded officially.
Malik, however, confirmed that a Rangers personnel was killed and two others wounded in firing during the clashes.
Two police personnel were also injured.
He said the JAAC activists positioned in the mountains opened fire on police and security personnel after darkness fell as the protesters attempted to advance towards Rawalakot.
According to a Rawalakot district administration officer, around 3,000 protesters had marched towards the city from Drek, while another group of around 2,000 approached from the bus terminal side.
The authorities prevented the protesters from entering the city.
In Poonch region, police claimed that armed groups associated with the banned JAAC attempted to enter Rawalakot and opened fire on law-enforcement personnel after being asked to disperse, injuring two policemen.
The police also accused JAAC-linked social media accounts of circulating fabricated videos and distorting facts to mislead the public.
JAAC executive council member Shaheen, however, rejected the allegations and accused law-enforcement personnel of opening "unprovoked fire" on a peaceful long march.
He vowed that the march would continue to Muzaffarabad. The confrontation comes amid weeks of protests by the JAAC over its demand for the abolition of 12 legislative assembly seats reserved for Kashmiri refugees.
The group began protests and a long march across PoK on June 9.
Before Monday's violence, 40 people had reportedly been killed during the unrest, including 34 protesters and six police and paramilitary personnel.
The government had opened negotiations with the JAAC to end the protests before the so-called legislative assembly elections, but the talks have so far failed to yield a settlement.
The government banned the JAAC last month.
The first phase of the elections was held in Mirpur on Monday.
Polling in Muzaffarabad is scheduled for Aug 2, while voting in the Poonch division will take place on Aug 10. The authorities have suspended Internet services in the Kashmir region. Besides, there has been a complete media ban in Pakistan on the coverage of the JAAC protest.
There are 53 seats in the so-called PoK legislative assembly; 5 are directly elected, while eight are reserved for women, technocrats and clerics.
With inputs from PTI
