Extremists have demolished the tombstones erected atop 47 graves in a cemetary for the Ahmadiyya community located in Dagri Ghumman, in Sialkot District.
Members of the local Ahmadiyya community claimed that the incident took place on Sunday. They further claimed that officials from the local police were present when extremists carried out this heinous act, but did not intervene. They added that out of 48 graves in the cemetary, gravestones atop 47 graves were destroyed by the extremists.
Two young men, who were attempting to record the incident were detained by the police and later allegedly forcibly deleted the footage from their mobile phones before releasing them.
The incident in Sialkot follows a similar events which took place earlier in the week in the southern district of Vehari where police, under pressure from extremists, defaced sacred inscriptions on some 17 Ahmadi graves. On September 25, police painted over some 13 graves in a joint cemetery located in Chak 363 EB, within the remits of the Gagoo Mandi Police Station. After rebuffing complaints from the local Ahmadi community, the next day the police blackened religious inscriptions on a further four Ahmadi graves in Chak 245 EB, within the remits of the Sheikh Fazil Police Station.
The local Ahmadi community said that these acts of vandalism by extremist elements were increasing feelings of insecurity amongst the community. By engaging in such deplorable actions, extremists were tarnishing Pakistan’s image in the international community. The police, instead of upholding the law, were complicit in desecrating Ahmadi graves to appease these extremist forces. It is the responsibility of the government to ensure the safety, dignity, and protection of Pakistan’s patriotic and peace-loving Ahmadi community.