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Rebellion in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) has intensified as civil unrest enters its third month, with no signs of slowing down. Rawalakot's Chinar Chowk and D-Chowk have emerged as the central epicentres of massive anti-establishment demonstrations, drawing thousands of angry citizens onto the streets.

Facing severe security threats and explicit boycott warnings from activist Sardar Aman Khan, the Election Commission of PoK indefinitely postponed polling for seven of the 11 scheduled seats originally slated for August 10. Voting will now proceed across only four seats — three in the Bagh district and one in Haveli.

Thousands Take To Streets Ahead Of Voting

Despite elections being limited to just four seats, local protesters have announced a complete boycott and threatened to disrupt voting procedures. Just 48 hours before the polls, thousands of men and women took to the streets of Bagh district in a show of defiance, chanting anti-Pakistan slogans and demanding a total election blackout.

Desperate to drum up support 72 hours ahead of polling, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and Bilawal Bhutto's Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) held major campaign rallies in Bagh. The PPP dispatched Bilawal Bhutto, while the PML-N sent former Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah.

However, the impact of the boycott was evident as visuals accessed by ABP News showed vast numbers of empty red and blue chairs, indicating minimal local attendance at both venues.

Buses Loaded With Outsiders, Mockery On Streets

With cross-border bus services between Pakistan's Punjab province and PoK halted since June 9, visuals accessed by ABP News showed dozens of Punjab-registered buses parked at the Bagh bus stand.

Sources said the PML-N had brought party cadres directly from Pakistan's Punjab province to artificially inflate crowd sizes for Rana Sanaullah's address.

The political move failed to resonate with angry locals. In Bagh, protesters paraded a decorated donkey symbolising Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, showering it with garlands and fake currency while shouting slogans: "Give another push to the falling walls; give another push to the sellouts!"

Aman Khan Compares Pakistani Soldiers To 'Prostitutes'

Addressing thousands gathered at Chinar Chowk in Rawalakot, Sardar Aman Khan, one of the prominent faces of the civil uprising in PoK, launched a scathing attack on the Pakistani military establishment.

In his address to the crowd, the Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC) activist explicitly compared Pakistani soldiers to "prostitutes" (tawayaf), alleging that troops were killing local civilians on the orders of generals and colonels strictly for money.

To intimidate the crowds, Pakistani armed forces resorted to aerial firing in Rawalakot late at night. However, demonstrators remained undeterred, marking 61 consecutive days of sustained agitation.

Rana Sanaullah Softens Stance After Calling Protesters 'Terrorists'

The escalating crisis has forced a visible shift in Islamabad's official posture.

Just last week, Rana Sanaullah, an adviser to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, publicly branded the demonstrators as "terrorists", claiming they had originally been trained years ago for terror strikes against India but had now turned against Pakistan.

However, speaking in Bagh, Sanaullah completely changed his rhetoric, claiming that 99% of those protesting were "brothers".

He assured that after the PML-N government is sworn in in PoK, the administration would directly engage with the movement's leadership to resolve all pending grievances.