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Claiming of constant discrimination and threats to their lives, the Ahmadiyya community in Faisalabad has one more thing to worry about: resting in peace.

The Ahmadiyya community has called upon government functionaries as well as police authorities to help avert a possible clash which could erupt if the grave of an Ahmadi is excavated from a Muslim cemetery in the jurisdiction of the Jaranwala police station.

In this regard, Secretary Amoor-e-Aama, Jamaat Ahmadiyya Faisalabad, Syed Mahmood Ahmad Shah has written two letters to the Punjab home secretary and top police officials, expressing fears that if immediate steps are not taken to resolve the issue many Ahmadis “may lose their lives at the hands of banned outfits that are constantly hurling threats”.

He pointed out that for the last many years, the Ahmadiyya community has been living in peace and harmony and the communities (Muslim and Ahmadiyya) have a common graveyard in Jaranwala.

He further said that one member of their community, Nazeer Ahmad, who died on May 11, 2012, was buried in the graveyard, with the consent of all the villagers. However, he added, soon enough some maulvis from out of town started protesting against the burial and began a hate campaign against Ahmadis.

“The locals facilitated the funeral prayer and permitted the burial as they are not perverse and deviant like the maulvis, who are from out of town. They are trying to convince people to dig out the graves of Ahmadis saying they are non-Muslim infidels,” Shah said.

The secretary warned that if a single grave of an Ahmadi is desecrated, it would result in “serious consequences”.

He appealed to government functionaries and police authorities to discourage the maulvis taking any such step.

“We have been targeted and victimised mercilessly but there has been no sympathetic consideration for this community,” Shah said.

Meanwhile, SP Jaranwala Division, Shah Nawaz told The Express Tribune that the issue had been resolved following negotiations with all the stakeholders including the Ahmadiyya community.

“It has been made clear to the Ahmadiyya community that they will not bury their community members in a graveyard which is also a Muslim graveyard,” he said

The police official further said that efforts are being made for the allocation of state land for burials of Ahmadis separately in a newly developed graveyard.

“Special police forces have also been constituted which will patrol in the area around the clock so as to avert any untoward incident,” the SP added.

Originally published by Tribune Pakistan

Photo by MASAUD SARWAR

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