The Ahmadiyya minority community faced heightened intimidation, harassment, and legal persecution during Eid-ul-Azha (June 7-9). According to community spokesperson and human rights activists, three FIRs were registered against community members in Punjab, and two incidents of forced conversion were reported in Karachi.
6 Min Read
June 10, 2025
Staff Report
LAHORE
Members of the Ahmadiyya minority community faced widespread intimidation, harassment, and legal persecution during the Eid-ul-Azha from June 7-9, according to the community spokesperson and human rights activists.
In the lead-up to Eid ul-Azha, Amnesty International also warned that Pakistani authorities must “immediately end the systemic repression of the Ahmadiyya community and uphold the right to freedom of belief and religion.” The international human rights organization documented how local and regional authorities across Pakistan took measures to prevent Ahmadis from celebrating the festival, including forcing individuals to sign affidavits to refrain from Eid prayers and rituals.
“The violence and harassment targeted against Ahmadis ahead of the Islamic holiday of Eid-ul-Azha is taking place against the backdrop of ongoing repression by the Pakistani authorities,” said Isabelle Lassée, Deputy Regional Director for South Asia at Amnesty International on June 5. “Not only are local authorities and local enforcement agencies across Pakistan failing to protect Ahmadis, they are themselves actively restricting their rights to freedom of belief and religion.”
The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) also expressed deep concern over the Lahore High Court Bar Association’s letter urging Punjab police to prevent Ahmadiyya community members from observing their religious rituals during Eid. HRCP warned that this “continued institutionalized discrimination against the Ahmadiyya community will empower vigilante actors and extremist groups to enforce a de facto ban on the community’s freedom of movement and public participation.”
Worship disruptions across multiple districts
During the three-day festival, Ahmadis were prevented from performing prayers within their places of worship across multiple districts including Khushab, Mirpurkhas, Lodhran, Bhakkar, Rajanpur, Umar Kot, Larkana, and Karachi, according to Jamaat Ahmadiyya Pakistan spokesperson Amir Mahmood.
In Shalamar Town, Lahore, extremists gathered outside an Ahmadiyya place of worship while members were offering prayers. The protesters sat outside, poured water, and demanded action against the worshippers inside. Police eventually evacuated the Ahmadis, recorded their names, and sent them home, while the worship place was sealed by welding. Some Ahmadi youth in the area were reportedly chased and threatened with assault by the extremists.
According to Mahmood, at least three formal legal cases were registered against Ahmadi community members during the Eid period under Pakistan’s controversial blasphemy laws, specifically Section 298-C of the Pakistan Penal Code. 298-C. The section relates to members of the Ahmadiyya community calling themselves a Muslim or preaching or propagating his faith to hurt religious feelings of Muslims. The offence carries a maximum punishment of three years imprisonment and imposition of fine.
In Gujranwala district, Samiullah from Kot Hara was charged on June 9 for allegedly “having possession of a lamb with the intention of offering sacrifice”. The case was filed by Basir Ali, a local Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) ticket holder. According to Mahmood, the police went ahead with the registration of the first investigation report for just possession of a lamb.
In Faisalabad’s Samundari area, Mujahid Ahmad was arrested while performing animal sacrifice at his father’s house. Police, accompanied by TLP activists, detained him and registered a case under sections 307 and 298-C at Tarkhani police station.
A third case was filed against Zulfiqar Ahmad in Sargodha district’s Sultan Sikandar Colony after a neighbour recorded him performing sacrifice within his home compound and reported it to police.
Forced conversion attempts
Community sources also report incidents of attempted forced conversions in Karachi. Ahmadiyya community members Irfan-ul-Haq and his son Rizwan-ul-Haq were taken to a police station by officers and TLP activists on June 6. Under pressure, they recited the Islamic declaration of faith, after which TLP members claimed they had “converted to Islam” and placed garlands around their necks before releasing them.
In another Karachi incident, Ahmadiyya community member Mubarak Ahmad Shah was beaten by police after someone filmed him performing sacrifice and sent the video to opponents. He was reportedly threatened with violence and forced to recite the Kalima and take an oath affirming the finality of Prophet Muhammad’s prophethood before being released, Mahmood said.
The incidents represent violations of Article 20 of Pakistan’s Constitution, which guarantees religious freedom to all citizens. In a statement on June 4, HRCP emphasized that requiring Ahmadis to submit affidavits disavowing their beliefs “violates the community’s constitutional right to freedom of religion or belief under Article 20 as well as their right to equal citizenship.”
The harassment follows a pattern documented by human rights organizations, with similar episodes of violence and intimidation occurring during religious festivals in previous years. Since mid-April 2025, multiple cases of violence by majoritarian religious groups against the Ahmadiyya community have resulted in at least three deaths, according to Amnesty International.
Community leaders continue to call for government protection and enforcement of constitutional rights, while international human rights organizations maintain pressure on Pakistani authorities to end what they describe as systematic persecution of the religious minority.
Categories: Ahmadis, Ahmadis And Pakistan, Ahmadiyyat: True Islam, Pakistan, Pakistan Police, The Muslim Times