Chakswari

Chakswari (Urdu: چکسواری‎), also known as Chaksawari, is an area in the Mirpur District of Azad Kashmir, Pakistan. It comprises 15 Union councils including the Islamgarh Municipal Committee. Amongst the primary affectees from the raising of the Mangla Dam project were inhabitants of Chakswari and Islamgarh. Chakswari is 26 miles or 41.84 km from Mirpur. The political constituency code for Chakswari and Islamgarh is LA-2.

Chakswari is rapidly becoming an economic hub and commercial area of the district. Chakswari comprises many villages that border the Mangla Dam and surround the bustling Chakswari bazaar. A major city attributed to the state of Mirpur, it remains a major trunk road to travellers and traders to Dadyal, Kotli from and to Mirpur and Bhimber. Chakswari Bazaar is a major economy in the region and today you can find all modern amenities one would expect in any major city in Pakistan.

Main Source of income of Chakswari, Azad Kashmir is investment via respected overseas kashmiri's who have moved to UK in the 60s and consecutive years to date. They have created well established communities in Bradford, Birmingham, Manchester, Leeds, Dewsbury, Nottingham, Sheffield, Stoke on Trent and a small number in towns around Greater Manchester and found in the South of England in Luton, Oxford and Rachyal family in London.

People of Chakswari are very entrepreneurial in spirit but also hard working who initially worked in British manufacturing and textiles industries. By the time of the second generation they began to diversify into transport work and business. The third and fourth generation have successfully moved into business and professional careers. People of Chakswari like the vast majority of people of AJK are renowned for their hospitality, etiquette and hard work.

Geography

Chakswari has plains and hills. It has a generally dry climate, with hot summers and cool winters. There is not much rain. The people of this area are agriculturalists belonging to the Jatt, Rajput & Moochi castes, with strong cultural links to the Pothohar Plateau region of Pakistan.

Settlements

Chakswari is divided into two parts. There is the historic old town which houses the majority of the wholesale shops for which the town is known and the newer part. It is called Chakswari Colony and was built for the families who lost their homes following the construction of Mangla Dam. The town is modern and around twenty thousand people live there. Chakswari boasts the biggest house-building boom after Mirpur. Chakswari is known for its excellent shopping areas and its large shopping plazas where most of the wholesale shops are. There are many stores, plazas, shopping malls & markets in these areas, and they are known for their different types of items sold there. There is also a main bazaar built recently for Chakswari known as Navi Bazaar (lit. New Market in Pahari).

Buildings

Chakswari is well known for the existence of The Holy Pir. It is most commonly known as Noshahi Pir who were part of the Muhammad family tree. The Noshahi Haji Pir Ganj Baksh tomb is in Ralmal Sharif in Gujrat. In the '90s, they were known for helping the people of Chakswari with things like poverty. It is one of the most famous Sufi shrines in the region. Chakswari also has lots of mosques, the main one being the Jamia Masjid located in the town. There are other mosques too such as the Jamia-e-Haydar Masjid or Ghazi Hasan Masjid which owes its name to the 15th century Muslim warrior in the region, Raja Ghazi Hasan Khan.

Notable places and people

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  Kalyal Mosque, Chakswari

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  Chakswari Grand Central Jamia Mosque

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  Houses of Kalyal

• The late Mian Hussain Ali – AJK State Council Member, politician, businessmen and patriarch of the Ali Family and responsible for Chakswari's place as a economic stalwart contributing to the success of Mirpur today. His grandson is Zafar Anwar a well known business man and politician. Hailed from Kalyal village Chakswari, Azad Kashmir.

• The late DSP Fazal Hussain was a prominent law man who policed Mirpur State following AJK liberation from India. DSP Fazal Hussain was a towering figure in personality as he was in character and a man of great principle. Much loved and remembered by all from Chakswari. Hailed from Kalyal village Chakswari, Azad Kashmir.

• Ch. Muhammad Anwar (d.2020) – Politician & former chairman District Council Mirpur, AJK Also the son of Mian Hussain Ali and father to Zafar Anwar. Hailed from Kalyal village, Chakswari, Azad Kashmir.

• Ch. Mushtaq Ahmed (d. 2016) – Managing Director of Hussain Ali Construction Company (HACC). Hailed from Kalyal Chakswari.

• Ch. Raza Ali – Managing Director of Raza Group of Companies hails from Kalyal, Chakswari, Azad Kashmir.

• Ch. Muhammad Saeed – President Pakistan Chamber of Commerce, Azad Group Managing Director, Honorary British Consul for AJK, MLA from Mirpur (representing PML-N). Chaudhry Saeed is an extemely successful businessman responsible for a great number of successful enterprises in Mirpur Azad Kashmir Toyota Azad Motors, Megha Mart, Shopping Pavilions and responsible for bringing big brand retailers into Azad Kashmir like Ideas, and holds the KFC and McDonalds franchise. Chaudhry Saeed hails from Kalyal village, Chakswari, Azad Kashmir.

• Ch. Zafar Anwar – Businessman and Senior Vice President (PTI) Ch. Zafar Anwar represents a new generation of highly educated young elites from Azad Kashmir and has many business interests including Valley Homes housing association in Mirpur. Hails from Kalyal village, Chakswari, Azad Kashmir.

• Ch. Maqsood Hussain (d. 2022) – UK Businessman father of Ch. Ansar Maqsood. Ch. Maqsood's family settled in Stoke-on-Trent UK and his children have various business interests in UK and AJK notably the Honda Empire car showroom in Mirpur. Hailed from Kalyal village, Chakswari, Azad Kashmir.

• Ch. Ansar Maqsood of Honda car showroom Mirpur AJK. A prominent Azad Kashmiri business man in AJK. Ch. Ansar Maqsood represents a new generation of entrepreneurial spirit in Mirpur Azad Kashmir and is responsible for a great deal in the vibrant economy of Mirpur city. Hails from Kalyal, Chakswari, Azad Kashmir.

• Ch. Muhammad Azam (b. 1929 – d. 2007) – Pakistan Air Force Squadron Leader with 36 years service and was stationed in Quetta, Karachi and Saudi Arabia. Hailed from Kalyal, Chakswari, Azad Kashmir.

• Ch. Abdul Karim– an MLA in the early years of parliament in AJK Ch. Abdul Karim is responsible for a great deal in shaping the state of Mirpur and contributing to it's successful place as the hub of economic activity in Azad Kashmir. Ch. Abdul Karim had many business interests including transport, logistics and construction. Hailed from Kalyal village, Chakswari, Azad Kashmir.

• Ch. Qasim Majeed – MLA (representing PPP) hails from Panyam Chakswari. Ch. Qasim Majeed brings much needed young blood and energy to the political landscape of Chakswari and Mirpur. Hails from Panyam village, Chakswari.

• Chaudhry Abdul Majeed served as the Prime Minister of Azad Jammu And Kashmir from 2011 to 2016. He has also been the President of the Pakistan People's Party's in Azad Kashmir's Chapter. Hails from Panyam village, Chakswari, Azad Kashmir.

• Zaman Khan – (born 2001), Professional cricketer who has represented Pakistan on the global stage. Hails from Chakswari, Azad Kashmir.

Brief origins summary of the Kalyal clan

The predominant inhabitants of Chakswari are Jat and Chaudhry biradri (family) and there has been an emphasis and interest on the major Jat clan of Chakswari namely the Kalyal Jat clan.

Origins of the Kalyal Jat clan lineage

The Kalyal Jat clan is a prominent clan found along the Jhelum River, Mirpur Region (Chakswari) but further up in other regions like Dadyal Azad Kashmir and Gujjar Khan in the Punjab. Sadly British colonialism and independence struggle history took precedence over local regional history in the modern era and little academic work was inked about the great Jat clans of the Jammu and Kashmir region that crossed the Jhelum river to Western Punjab regions like Jhelum, Gujjar Khan and further into the Gujrat regions. The Kalyals (Kalial's) were a prominent clan and thus some piecemeal history exists and referenced here. Even the early 20th Century British ethnologist, H. A Rose has made a reference to the Kalyal Jat clan as being the last of the Rajput Jat clans.

"Sombanai descent and Rajput ancestry i.e., a last status as Rajput— are claimed by the Kalial (Kalyal)."

Horace Arthur Rose was an early 20th Century British colonial official who co-authored "A Glossary of the Tribes and Castes of the Punjab and North-West Frontier Province", which is one of the most comprehensive Glossary on the tribes of Punjab, and a good source on many Punjabi tribes.

the Kalyal (Kalial) tribe claims descent from Kala Khan or Mal Khan, a Chandravanshi Rajput, who settled in the Potohar region in the 15th Century. However, some Kalyal (Kalial) lineages claim Suryavanshi ancestry.

There are also a widespread tradition that Kal to be a Bhatti Rajput, which would make the Kalyal a clan of the Bhatti tribe. Therefore, the Kal aal are the descendants of Kals. The Kalyal are essentially a tribe of the Chibhal, a region between the Tawi and Jhelum rivers, now divided by the line of control, forming the districts of Mirpur and Bhimber in Azad Kashmir, Rajouri, Reasi and parts of Jammu district west of the river Tawi in Indian administered Kashmir. From Chibhal, groups of Kalyal began migrating to the Punjab plains, initially settling in around Dina, and Sahowa and then spreading to Gujar Khan, which is home to the greatest concentrations of Kalyal. Most of the Gujarkhan Kalyal claim to a be a clan of the Bhatti Rajputs. Other groups moved southeast, settling in Gujrat district, where they are still an important Jat clan. There is a single Kalyal village in Kharian Tehsil of Gujrat district.

Kalyal in Azad Kashmir (Chakswari, Mirpur region).

The most visible branch of the Kalyal are found in a single village named Kalyal in Chakswari, Azad Jammu and Kashmir. Giving credence to the Rajput lineage due to the influential personalities that came from this village. To this day, the Kalyal village descendants remain a very influential prominent group in Chakswari and Mirpur city. The Kalyal, Chakswari family remain influential across Mirpur state and city which is the economic hub of Azad Kashmir. The Kalyal village in Chakswari was widely known as the home of Chakswari nobility or gentry in the past. Further divisible Kalyal branches are also found in Mohra-na-Mohra / Mohra Mundian and Pind Kalan villages Add-ne-Plai, Laddar and Domal (now inundated by the Mangla Dam) and also Gaderi (now inundated by the Mangla Dam), while another branch is in Palaak, Tarnot, and Arnoh, near Panyam.

Further Jatt branches migrated from Sialkot to Gujrat Gorsian, from there to the Mirpur region and settled in the villages of Panyam (Moohri Panyam / Baavaya-ni-Moohri – these have largely moved to New Abadi Kalyal Chakswari due to the Dam); Essar, Pind Kalan; Gowanda and Prahi (near Chok Sahiban); and Mera Kandi.

In Panyam Chakswari, also known as Sarr-wala-Mohra, branche/s of the Kalyal's originate in Tope Mankiala near Rawalpindi. Finally, there is also a lineage found in the village of Kalyal Sheru.