Pakistani Police Destroy Ahmadi Places of Worship
Lahore: Jamaat-e-Ahmadiyya Pakistan (JAP) on Monday said that police in Pakistan’s Punjab province had demolished the minarets of two 70-year-old places of worship of the Ahmadiyya community, allegedly under pressure from religious fundamentalist groups. This demolition action took place in Khanewal and Gujranwala. “In Khanewal and Gujranwala, the police, under pressure from religious fundamentalist groups, demolished the minarets of Ahmadiyya shrines and covered sacred inscriptions with cement,” senior JAP official Aamir Mehmood told PTI.
What is the court decision?
Aamir Mahmood said that both places of worship were built in the 1950s. Mahmood said that Justice Tariq Saleem Sheikh of the Lahore High Court had clearly stated in his judgment on August 31, 2023 that destroying places of worship of the Ahmadiyya congregation built before 1984 was illegal. The court clearly ruled that the law passed in 1984 did not apply to such places of worship, and any act of vandalism or destruction was illegal.
What do the police say?
Claiming blatant violation of the court order, Mahmood said, “We showed the Lahore High Court order to the police, but it was ignored. The police stated that they were under great pressure from religious elements.” JAP condemned the police action, calling it illegal and a violation of rights.
The Ahmadiyya community is being harassed
In Pakistan, religious fundamentalist groups reportedly intensified their hate campaign against members of the Ahmadiyya community, leading to increased harassment of them in the workplace, their dismissal from jobs and public calls for a boycott of Ahmadiyya shopkeepers. (Language)
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