Tombstones of Ahmadiyya graves that bore Islamic quotes and symbols of holy places were desecrated by Hafizabad Police on Friday, which left several echoing the plight of minorities in Pakistan all over again.
According to local media reports, anti-Ahmadi sentiment reared its ugly head on Friday after the Hafizabad police damaged 45 Ahmadiyya graves as they found the Islamic symbolism on the tombstones ‘objectionable’. Jamaat-e-Ahmadiyya Pakistan spokesperson Saleem ud Din revealed that the graveyard has been there since 1974.
In this regard, a user shared disturbing videos of the destroyed graves, which then raised hue and cry over the fear minorities have been living under in Pakistan.
The same user also pointed out how Ahmadis were serving Pakistan, noting that a few days before the incident, a young girl was flown from West Africa into Ahmadi-majority community Rabwah in Pakistan where she was given medical treatment at an Ahmadi-run hospital. He lamented that “while some continue [to] cherish life, others cannot even respect the dead”.
https://twitter.com/UsmanAhmad_iam/status/1490564553247281157
Some also expressed sadness and horror over the incident. Several said that even the dead weren’t safe in Pakistan. One said that the scenes felt like something out of a “godless land”, adding that even “eternal rest” was not a given.
Many also pointed out the sufferings of minorities in Pakistan, with one stating that despite the graves being desecrated, elected representatives would continue to say that minorities were safe in the country. Echoing similar sentiment, a user said that it was alarming how such affronts continued to happen under the current regime, wondering what type of country Pakistan had become.
Another user was of the view that the next time anyone said minorities were safe in Pakistan, they should be sent the disturbing video of the desecrated graves to counter their point. She said that those who deemed minorities to be safe should try to justify their views considering the video that would prove otherwise.
The attack on the graves was one of several affronts against the Ahmadi community in the Hafizabad area.
As per media reports, in response to the request of anti-Ahmadi elements, the police had removed Muslim names and Quranic verses from Ahmadi households.
Last year in November, a petitioner also brought forth a case against Ahmadis for using Islamic names and verses on their tombstones. He had also expressed reservations over Ahmadis building a mosque-like worship place for themselves.
The petitioner, Umar Hayat, told local media that he was unable to get justice in the case after an additional district and sessions judge dismissed the application for blasphemy charges to be brought against Ahmadis. He said that Ata Ullah Shah, the son of late Barelvi scholar Shabbir Shah Hafizabadi had managed to get the police to remove the tombstones.
