Police, extremists destroy minarets of 3 Ahmadi places of worship in Pakistan

Minarets of three Ahmadi minority’s places of worship were destroyed by police and religious extremists while 31 Ahmadis who came to stop the desecration were booked in Punjab province of Pakistan, a community organisation said on Friday.

Jamaat-e-Ahmadiyya Pakistan (JAP) said the incidents took place in Sialkot and Faisalabad districts of Punjab, some 100 kms and 130 kms, from Lahore, during this week.

A senior police officer told PTI that since minarets of Ahmadi worship mosques are similar to mosques, local Muslims object to them demanding their demolition.

“We first ask the Ahmadi community to demolish minarets themselves. If they don’t, then the administration has to oblige complaints against them,” he added.

On Thursday in Kukhanwali, Sialkot, the minarets of an Ahmadi worship site at the place of worship were demolished by police acting on a complaint of a local cleric.

The Ahmadis informed that it was constructed in 1980 and under the law, any construction of Ahmadis’ places of worship done before 1984 can not be demolished, the JAP said in a statement, adding, “But the police did not stop citing pressure from religious groups.”

In another incident in Sialkot’s Kot Karam Bakhsh, the police demolished the minarets of a 70-year-old Ahmadi worship place.

According to the JAP, members of a radical Islamist party attacked the worship site and used hammers to damage the mihrab and minarets, forced entry into the worship place and residences of Ahmadis.

They also vandalised doors, damaged three motorcycles, and hurled stones at both the worship place and nearby houses, the statement claimed.

“Despite the attack by the radical religious group members, the police, instead of taking action against them, booked 31 Ahmadis trying to protect their places of worship,” it added.

An FIR has been registered under Sections 324 (attempted murder), 148, and 149 (rioting) of the Pakistan Penal Code against the Ahmadis.

In the third incident during, the JAP said that some 20 religious extremists on motorcycles forcibly entered an Ahmadi worship place after breaking its locks in Faisalabad’s Chak 27 JB.

“They climbed onto the roof, destroyed the minarets, and damaged the dome. Armed with weapons, these individuals claimed to be members of law enforcement when confronted by local residents. They later fled from the scene,” the JAP statement added.

Amir Mehmood, spokesperson for the Ahmadi community, condemned the attack and the police’s illegal actions. He demanded legal action against those responsible for the demolition of those who targeted the Ahmadi homes.

“Both police and extremist elements continue violating the Lahore High Court’s clear directives regarding not demolishing Ahmadis worship places built before 1984,” he said, adding, the law enforcement agencies and extremist elements are tarnishing Pakistan’s image internationally by desecrating Ahmadi worship sites.

The spokesperson demanded immediate measures to protect Ahmadi worship places, ensure the safety of Ahmadis, and curb the growing hate campaign against them.

He also urged the authorities to hold both police officials and extremist attackers accountable for their actions.

Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) is reportedly involved in targeting the Ahmadi worship places across the country claiming that Ahmadi worship places are similar to that of Muslim mosques because they have minarets.

Although Ahmadis consider themselves Muslims, Pakistan’s Parliament in 1974 declared the community as non-Muslims. A decade later, they were not just banned from calling themselves Muslims but were also barred from practising aspects of Islam.

These include constructing or displaying any symbol that identifies them as Muslims such as building minarets or domes on mosques, or publicly writing verses from the Quran.

A Lahore High Court ruling states the places of worship built prior to a particular ordinance issued in 1984 are legal and hence should not be altered or razed down.