PoJK Doctor barred from leaving Pakistan, sparks outcry over rights violations

Kotli [PoJK], August 5 (ANI): Following India's "Operation Sindoor," Pakistan is intensifying its efforts to suppress dissent in both Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK) and Pakistan-occupied Gilgit Baltistan (PoGB), regions that have been unlawfully occupied by Pakistan since 1947.
According to the post shared by Kashmir Activist Javed Beigh on X, "In continuation of its brutal suppression of dissent in Pakistan Occupied Gilgit and Baltistan (PoGB), the state of Pakistan has also begun tightening its control over Pakistan Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK), especially in light of last years anti-government protests in PoJK in which nearly 2 dozen civilians were killed and the state of Pakistan was forced to call its paramilitary force in PoJK for the first time since 1947 to control anger of the people of PoJK."
Javed Beigh mentioned in a recent post that a young Kashmiri Muslim physician from the Potohari Pahari-speaking community in Kotli district, located in Pakistan-Occupied Jammu and Kashmir, was forcibly taken off his flight to the United States earlier this month and barred from departing Pakistan, allegedly due to accusations against his family of being "Indian Agents."
Syed Rehan Touqeer, a qualified medical professional from Kotli in PoJK, had obtained a valid US immigrant visa and was en route to join his wife and family when he was not allowed to board his flight at Islamabad International Airport on June 4.
As reported, despite passing all standard immigration procedures and boarding an Etihad Airways flight to New York, Rehan was unexpectedly removed from the aircraft just before it was set to depart. Pakistani officials informed him that his name had been added to the Provisional National Identification List (PNIL), which functions as a no-exit list, without any advance notice, judicial directive, or clarification.
Further reports indicate that Rehan was kept in the dark about any accusations against him. The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) of Pakistan allegedly asserted that Rehan's name was associated with a First Information Report (FIR) filed in Kotli, PoJK in November 2024, even though official records confirm that he was on duty in Lahore during that time. Notably, his name does not appear in the FIR itself, as highlighted in the post.
"The civil society of PoJK has condemned the blacklisting of Dr. Rehan as a violation of constitutional and international human rights. The incident underscores growing concerns about collective punishment, arbitrary restrictions, and suppression of dissent in both PoJK and PoGB. Furthermore, Dr. Rehan's predicament highlights a troubling pattern of authoritarian overreach of the state of Pakistan in both PoJK and PoGB," stated Javed Beigh's post. (ANI)