Azad Jammu and Kashmir (, abbreviated as AJK and colloquially referred to as simply Azad Kashmir, is a region administered by Pakistan as a nominally self-governing entity and constituting the western portion of the larger Kashmir region, which has been the subject of a dispute between India and Pakistan since 1947. Azad Kashmir also shares borders with the Pakistani provinces of Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to the south and west, respectively. On its eastern side, Azad Kashmir is separated from the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir by the Line of Control, which serves as the de facto border between the Indian- and Pakistani-controlled parts of Kashmir. Geographically, it covers a total area of 13,297 km2 and has a total population of 4,045,366 as per the 2017 national census.
Poonch District is a district of Pakistan-administered Azad Kashmir in the disputed Kashmir region. It is one of the 10 districts of this Pakistan-administered territory. It is bounded on the north by Bagh District, on the north-east by Haveli District, on the south-east by the Poonch District of Indian-administered Kashmir, on the south by Azad Kashmir's Sudhanoti and Kotli districts, and on the west by Rawalpindi District of Pakistan's Punjab Province. The Poonch District is part of the greater Kashmir dispute between India and Pakistan. The district headquarters is the city of Rawalakot. It is the third most populous district of Azad Kashmir.
Rawalakot is the capital of Poonch district in Azad Kashmir, Pakistan. It is located in the Pir Panjal Range.
Pallandri, also spelled Palandri, originally Pulandari, is a Tehsil which serves as the administrative capital of Sudhanoti district of Azad Kashmir. It is located at latitude 33° 42′ 54″ N, longitude 73° 41′ 9″ E, 90 km (56 mi) from Islamabad, the capital of Pakistan. It is connected with Rawalpindi and Islamabad through Azad Pattan road. The main tribe of Pallandri is the Sudhan tribe. Here in Palindri the first Government of Sidhnuti Azad Kashmir on October 4,1947 was established
Sardar Muhammad Ibrahim Khan was a revolutionary leader and politician from the western region of Jammu and Kashmir, who led the 1947 Poonch Rebellion against the Maharaja in the state of Jammu and Kashmir and played a key role in the First Kashmir War, supporting Pakistan. He served as the President of Azad Kashmir for 13 years across four non-consecutive terms and still remains the longest-serving president of the state, since its establishment.
Sudhan are one of the major tribes from the Poonch Division in Azad Kashmir with their population centered around Poonch and Sudhanoti, alongside a smaller population in the northern areas of the neighboring Bagh and Kotli. According to the local oral tradition of the tribe, they are allegedly a branch of the Saddozai tribe and originated from Pashtun areas in Afghanistan, and were the founders of their heartland of Sudhanoti.
Sudhanoti meaning the "heartland of Sudhans" or "Sudhan heartland"), is one of the 10 districts of Pakistan-administered Azad Kashmir in the disputed Kashmir region. The Sudhanoti District is bounded on the north and east by the Poonch District, on the south by the Kotli District, and on the west by the Rawalpindi District of Pakistan's Punjab Province. It is located 90 kilometres (56 mi) from Islamabad, the capital of Pakistan. It is connected with Rawalpindi and Islamabad via the Azad Pattan Road.
Poonch District was a district of the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir, which is currently divided between India and Pakistan. The Pakistani part of the erstwhile district is now the Poonch Division in the Azad Kashmir territory, whilst the Indian part of the district is the Poonch district in Jammu and Kashmir. The capital of the Pakistan-controlled side is Rawalakot; while the capital of the Indian-controlled side is Poonch.
Colonel Khan Muhammad Khan was a prominent Sudhan soldier and politician in Poonch, serving in the Legislative Assembly of the princely state of Jammu & Kashmir until 1947. Later he served as the Chairman of the War Council during the 1947 Poonch Rebellion.
Colonel Sher Ahmed Khan, was one of the guerrilla commanders of the Azad Kashmir Movement and also served as the President of Azad Kashmir. He was known as Sher-e-Jang and awarded the Fakhr-i-Kashmir, which is equivalent to Hilal-i-Jurat.
Muhammad Sajjad Khan was a Pakistani militant and Commander-in-Chief of Harkat-ul-Mujahideen. He was known as Sajjad Afghani, due to his participation in the Soviet-Afghan War.
Khan Muhammad Khan commonly known as Khan of Mong, was a Captain in the British Indian Army during the World War II. After demobilisation, he served as a rebel leader during the First Kashmir War. He is credited with the capture of Mirpur, He was also allegedly involved with the Rawalpindi Conspiracy and the Poonch Uprising.
The 1955 Poonch revolt, also known as the 1955 Sudhan uprising was a Civil revolt in Azad Jammu and Kashmir against the State of Pakistan. The uprising broke out in February 1955 and was provoked largely by the dismissal of Sardar Ibrahim Khan. It took a year until the uprising was suppressed in October 1956.
In spring 1947, an uprising against the Maharaja Hari Singh of Jammu and Kashmir broke out in the Poonch jagir, an area bordering the Rawalpindi district of West Punjab and the Hazara district of the North-West Frontier Province in the future Pakistan. It was driven by grievances such as high taxes, the Maharaja's neglect of World War veterans, and above all, Muslim nationalism with a desire to join Pakistan. The leader of the rebellion, Sardar Ibrahim Khan, escaped to Lahore by the end of August 1947 and persuaded the Pakistani authorities to back the rebellion. In addition to the backing, Prime Minister Liaquat Ali Khan authorised an invasion of the state, by the ex-Indian National Army personnel in the south and a force led by Major Khurshid Anwar in the north. These invasions eventually led to the First Kashmir War fought between India and Pakistan, and the formation of Azad Kashmir provisional government. The Poonch jagir has since been divided across Azad Kashmir, administered by Pakistan and the state of Jammu and Kashmir, administered by India.
Khaigala is a town in Rawalakot tehsil Poonch district of Azad Kashmir. It is located in Rawalakot tehsil of the Poonch district. Majority of population are well educated
The 1837 Poonch revolt, also known as the 1837 Sudhan revolt was a revolt in the western Poonch hills in the Kashmir region under the Sikh Empire. It took place in what is now the Poonch Division in Azad Kashmir administered by Pakistan. The region was given as a jagir to the Dogra brothers, Dhian Singh and Gulab Singh, whose administration was effectively the target of the rebellion. It was led by an influential zamindar of Poonch and headman of the Sudhans, Shams Khan. After some initial successes, the rebellion was crushed by Gulab Singh with some brutality. A memorial for the victims called Yaadghar-e-Shahuda has been erected at Mong after the formation of Azad Kashmir.
LA-20 Poonch & Sudhnoti-III is a constituency of the Azad Kashmir Legislative Assembly which is currently represented by Sardar Muhammad Yaqoob Khan of the Pakistan People's Party (PPP). It covers half of the area of Rawalakot Tehsil in Poonch District.
Captain Hussain Khan was a prominent Sudhan soldier who fought most notably in the First Kashmir War in the Battle of Rawalakot against the forces of the Princely State of Jammu and Kashmir.
PC Pak Search Sudhan Operation was a Pakistani military operation of the 1955 Poonch uprising. It was the first major operation of the Pakistan Army inside Pakistan and was conducted against Sudhan tribal insurgents in the Sudhan-majority Sudhanoti, Poonch, Bagh, and Kotli Districts of Azad Kashmir.
The Battle of Rawalakot, was a battle fought by the Azad Kashmir Regular Force against the State of Jammu and Kashmir which took place in the city of Rawalakot and surrounding areas between November 4–14, 1947 during the First Kashmir War, which was initiated by Muslim Sudhan ex-servicemen to fight for the accession of Jammu and Kashmir to the Dominion of Pakistan. On 15 June, Sardar Ibrahim Khan addressed a meeting in Rawalakot attended by 20,000 people, and gave a speech in "most 'seditious' terms". He told his audience that Pakistan, a Muslim state, was coming into being and the people of Jammu and Kashmir could not remain unaffected. After that day, he says, "a strange atmosphere took the place of the usually peaceful life in these parts". On 22 June, Chaudhary Hamidullah, the acting president of the Muslim Conference, visited Rawalakot and initiated secret plans to organize the ex-servicemen of the district for an eventual confrontation with the Jammu and Kashmir State Forces.
