Police in Sangla Hill, Nankana district, have demolished the minarets and mehrabs of two Ahmadiyya worship places in Chohar Mughlian and Chohar Kotli, reportedly acting on the demands of extremist groups.
According to details, for several weeks, extremist elements had been campaigning for the destruction of these architectural features. Local authorities, including the Assistant Commissioner and Deputy Superintendent of Police, had allegedly pressured members of the Ahmadiyya community to dismantle the minarets and mehrabs themselves. Community representatives, however, refused, stating they would not participate in an unlawful act.
On the night of 2 September, despite warnings from the community that such an operation would contravene both the Constitution and Supreme Court rulings, police from Sangla Hill, accompanied by municipal staff, carried out the demolition. The debris was removed from the sites.
Spokesperson for Jamaat-e-Ahmadiyya Pakistan, Amir Mahmood, strongly condemned the police action, calling it a “clear violation of the Constitution of Pakistan and the Supreme Court’s 2014 judgement on the protection of all places of worship.” He added that extremist groups are running a coordinated campaign to damage Ahmadiyya worship sites, and that the police should be safeguarding them rather than participating in unlawful acts.
“Such illegal steps, taken under pressure from extremists, tarnish Pakistan’s reputation in the eyes of the world,” Mahmood said. He urged authorities to ensure the protection of Ahmadis’ lives and property and to put a permanent end to these unlawful measures against their places of worship.