The police eventually determined that they had not broken any blasphemy or terrorism laws, as alleged, and released them without registering an FIR. PHOTO: FILE
LAHORE:
A group of anti-Ahmadi activists and police dragged five members of the community from an anti-terrorist court to a police station and detained them for several hours here on Tuesday.
The police eventually determined that they had not broken any blasphemy or terrorism laws, as alleged, and released them without registering an FIR.
The Ahmadis were attending a hearing at the anti-terrorism court earlier in the day concerning relatives who have also been accused of blasphemy and terrorism offences by printing an Ahmadi newspaper, under Sections 295B and 298C of the Pakistan Penal Code and Section 11-W of the Anti-Terrorism Act.
Members of the Khatm-e-Nabuwat Lawyers Forum (KNLF) opposed the bail applications of Faisal Tahir, Azhar Zarif, Khalid Ashfaq and Tahir Mahmood.
Shortly after the court granted bail to two of the accused, Tahir and Zarif, some 15 men approached the five Ahmadis and, with the help of the police, snatched their mobile phones and took them away to Mustafabad police station, an Ahmadi who had spoken to the detainees later told The Express Tribune.
“They appeared to be very angry that two people had been granted bail,” he said. “They claimed that one of them had been wearing a ring inscribed with a Quranic verse, and that this was a crime. Apparently they intend to scare people from supporting or representing Ahmadis at trial.”
He said that the SHO had contacted an SP, who had investigated the complaint and then determined it to be baseless.
Hassan Muavia, the complainant in the case being heard earlier at the anti-terrorism court and of the application asking Mustafabad police to register an FIR, said one of the Ahmadis was wearing a ring with a Quranic verse written on it. “He was using the same finger to clean his nose, which is a crime and a sin,” he said.
Muavia, who is also a KNLF spokesman, claimed that the Ahmadis had been filming their movement and sending details of their vehicles to someone via SMS.
He said that the Ahmadis were planning to attack them. He said that the KNLF would move the courts to cancel the bails of the two men granted them on Tuesday, and to direct the police to register a case against the five Ahmadis released without an FIR.
Mustafabad SHO Saeed Sarwar told The Express Tribune that the complainants were harassing members of the Ahmadi community. He said their allegations were totally baseless and that was why they had not registered an FIR.
This is the third time this month that this set of anti-Ahmadi campaigners has sought to register cases against Ahmadis. In another case, seven Ahmadis are accused of violating Section 295B (defiling the Holy Quran) of the PPC and Section-11 of the ATA.
The anti-terrorism court was to hear their bail applications on Tuesday, but deferred them till May 13.
Published in The Express Tribune, May 8th, 2013.
COMMENTS (6)
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A peaceful community who never came out on the streets like so many PTI people are doing ... and look at their suffering for the past 40 years.
Every one has right to spend his life according to his believes and faith.. No one can declare non-muslim to any one as no one can see inside the heart of other,, But this happens in Pakistan because there are the people who treat Islam as their home department they even don,t know about the true teachings of Islam,, But salute to Ahmadis who are still happily and spending their lives according to teachings of Islam,, as i guaranteed if in 73 mullahs were declared non-muslims may be they have broke all the Pakistan,, butt ahmadis are peaceful and loving people,, these are those Mullahs which were saying that they will not allow to make Pakistan butt now they are the presidents.. A silent message for those who think...
A community who migrated to Pakistan in 1947 and supported its creation is now poorly treated by the state, it worked to establish, on the behest of Mullahs who rejected its creation. I condemn this harassment. Pakistan is not owned by anarchist Mullahs who don’t care about law and try to justify everything through their violence and brutality. The new government which may be about to take office next week must take note and reflect on the root causes of violence in the country from day one. As an Ahmadi I am not afraid of these thugs nor will I get intimidated and nor will I change my understanding of Islam – a peaceful religion which is devoid of the notion of violence unlike what is practiced by Pakistani Islamists. Beat me as much as you can.
If the peace loving Ahmadi Muslims are branded as 'fake Muslims" and persecuted simply because of their belief. Then are you saying that the violent & murderous people who commit such atrocities are "True Muslims"? Please answer
No wonder the world has such a negative view about Islam? These Muslims say that Islam is a 'religion of peace' yet persecute anyone/any minority who differs from their mainstream Orthodox view. On the other hand, the Ahmadi Musilms say Islam is a religion of peace and also demonstrate it by the peaceful way of life.
I didn't know, As an Ahmadi Muslim, it was crime to worship Allah in Pakistan?
i wonder what Najam Sethi is doing in his interim tenure,although he speaks a lot for ahmadis as journalist, but when he got an opportunity to refute such heinous crimes he is ignoring at all.Najam sb don't be a pseudo-liberal chattery journalist! persecution of ahmadis intensified in lahore in some previous days.no one even paying a heed to it rather to solve.not much mysterious prejudice from all the folds of society...
I feel sad for Ahmadis of Pakistan.