Pushp Saraf

A mass agitation has erupted in Gilgit-Baltistan (GB), an Indian territory under Pakistan’s illegal occupation, after Islamabad’s attempt to impose federal taxes on the region. On August 30, GB witnessed a sweeping shutter-down strike as residents voiced their fury. Reading the public mood, the local government quickly endorsed the demand to declare GB a non-tariff area, grant exemptions from sales and income taxes and withdraw cases filed against protesting traders.

Yet, instead of offering real relief, Pakistan’s federal government has merely announced the creation of a committee—headed by federal minister Sardar Awais Ahmad Khan Leghari – to “devise a solution.” The move reeks of stalling rather than sympathy.

The irony of the situation is hard to miss. The GB cabinet is

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