AJK cabinet approves special courts for overseas Kashmiris

The Azad Jammu and Kashmir cabinet has approved the establishment of special courts for overseas Kashmiris, alongside healthcare upgrades and a two per cent share of the budget for sports, according to reports by The Nation and Dunya News.

Both outlets reported the decision to set up dedicated courts for Kashmiri expatriates. Neither report said how many courts would be created, where they would be located, when they would start hearing cases, or which categories of cases would fall within their jurisdiction.

The Nation reported that the cabinet also approved improvements to the territory's healthcare system. The report did not give the amount to be spent, name the hospitals or facilities concerned, or say how the upgrades would be funded.

Dunya News reported that the cabinet approved allocating two per cent of the budget to sports. The report did not specify the period over which the share would apply, whether it represented additional money, or how it would be divided between departments and districts.

Neither outlet published the full text of the cabinet's decisions or a statement from the AJK government explaining them. The reports did not name the ministers who moved the proposals or say when the approved measures would take effect.

The AJK government is based in Muzaffarabad, and the territory has its own legislative assembly and cabinet, which handle internal matters under the AJK constitution.

Overseas Kashmiris, particularly those settled in Britain and the Gulf, have longstanding links to property and family cases in the territory, though the reports did not say whether those were the reason for the new courts. It was also not stated whether the courts would sit in Azad Kashmir, abroad, or hear cases remotely.