Two graves belonging to members of the Ahmadi community at a graveyard in the Kasur district of Punjab were reportedly desecrated by extremist individuals on Saturday. According to the community’s spokesperson, the incident took place at a cemetery in the Bhulair area of Kasur.
In the statement, the spokesperson further noted that in most cases, it’s the police that carry out the desecration of Ahmadi graves. There has been a rise in incidents of vandalisation of Ahmadi worship places and graves in the past few months.
On Sept. 23, the Punjab police desecrated more than 70 tombstones of Ahmadis in Daska, Sialkot, in the wee hours.
On Sept. 26, Ahmadi worship places in Sheikhupura and Okara were vandalised in two separate attacks. Moreover, an Ahmadi superintendent of police (SP) faced threats from religious quarters in Mandi Bahauddin during that week. These incidents targeting the community continue to take place despite the Lahore High Court’s recent verdict that barred the police from demolishing Ahmadi worship places that were built before the passage of Ordinance XX in 1984. The ordinance, promulgated by military dictator Zia ul Haq, had made it a criminal offence for Ahmadis to use Islamic terms and titles or “pose as Muslims”. Religious extremists who demolish Ahmadi worship places cite this law to justify their actions, and the authorities often side with the attackers.
On August 21, caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar ul Haq Kakar mentioned Ahmadis along with other minorities during his speech condemning the Jaranwala incident where churches and Christian homes were burnt by a mob over blasphemy allegations. But since that speech, several Ahmadi worship places have been desecrated in Pakistan.
This year alone, there were 18 attacks on Ahmadi places of worship in the country. According to the community, the police either take part in the desecration or give a free hand to extremist individuals to attack the worship places.
