The Azad Kashmir Regiment, also known as AK Regt, is one of the six infantry regiments in the Pakistan Army. The regiment takes its name from Azad Kashmir, which is the Pakistani-administered territory of the Kashmir region. As per the order of seniority, it is the fourth regiment, but was the first to be raised after the independence of Pakistan from British colonial rule. Its regimental Centre is located at Mansar camp in Attock District, on the border of Punjab and KPK provinces. The regiment has participated in all major and minor operations and wars fought by the army. Notable commanders of the regiment include lieutenant general Haroon Aslam, an ex-commander of Pakistan Army Special Service Group who led the SSG operation in Swat in 2009, and lieutenant general Hidayat ur Rehman, who commanded Operation al-Mizan and operation Zarb e Azab in FATA from 2014 to 2016.
Historical background
The Azad Kashmir Regiment was established in 1974 from the original Kashmir Liberation Forces that rose in 1947 in rebellion against the Maharaja of Jammu and Kashmir in present-day Azad Kashmir. They were regularised at the end of the First Kashmir War and made a part of the Pakistan Army under the name Azad Kashmir Regular Force (AKRF). The force has the distinction of not having been raised by any government order, but "raised itself" when bands of armed World War II veterans organized themselves into disciplined ad hoc platoons, companies and battalions led by retired officers, JCOs and NCOs, and went out to fight in Kashmir against the Indian Army in 1948. The AKRF had its own intake and training structure separate from the Pakistan Army. Uniforms and rank structures were the same as in the Pakistan Army. At that time, all the battalions of the AKRF were part of the 12th Infantry Division of the Pakistan Army, permanently stationed in Azad Kashmir. Originally created as militia, the AKRF functioned as a paramilitary force.
The AKRF became regular Infantry Regiment in 1974 as Azad Kashmir Regiment.
Commandants of the Regiment
Col Commandants of the Regt include ;
Lt Gen Muhammad Akbar Khan (April 1975 to Oct 1976) Lt Gen Faiz Ali Chishti HI(M) SB.t (Oct 1976 to Oct 1980) Lt Gen Sardar Farooq Shaukat Khan Lodhi HI(M) SB.t (Jan 1981 to Jan 1985) Lt Gen Zahid Ali Akbar Khan HI(M) SB.t (Jan 1985 to Aug 1989) Lt Gen Ziaullah Khan HI(M) ( Nov 1993 to Nov 1997) Maj Gen Muhammad Saleem Arshad HI(M) TB.t (Nov 1997 to Nov 1998) Maj Gen Muhammad Anwar Khan HI(M) (Nov 1999 to Jul 2001) Lt Gen Javed Hassan HI(M) (March 2002 to Oct 2004) Maj Gen Mukhtar Ahmed HI(M) (March 2005 to March 2009) Lt Gen Haroon Aslam HI(M) SB.t (March 2009 to Oct 2013) Lt Gen Ishfaq Nadeem Ahmad HI(M) (Oct 2013 to March 2017) Lt Gen Hidayat ur Rehman HI(M) (March 2017 to Apr 2019) Lt Gen Sher Afgun HI(M) (Apr 2019 to Dec 2021) Lt Gen Sarfaraz Ali Shaheed HI(M) TB.t & Bar (Dec 2021 to Aug 2022) Lt Gen Shahid Imtiaz HI(M) (16 March 2023-till date)