Maqsood Ahmad (58), was martyred in Nawab Shah, Sindh after a sectarian attack. This latest attack comes just days after another Ahmadi Muslim, Mr Chaudhury Muhammad Akram was also martyred in Nawab Shah.
Just after 2pm local time Mr Maqsood Ahmad was stopped by unknown assailants in the Mohni shopping area and they started firing at him. Due to the severity of the attack, Mr Maqsood Ahmad died instantly. The deceased had been in the area on routine business in his capacity as a salesman for a private medicinal company.
The deceased lived in Rabwah but regularly travelled to Nawab Shah for work purposes. Because of his regular visits he had become well known in the area where he was attacked. For some time he had been receiving various threats, whilst one of his clients had also been intimidated and told to stop dealing with Maqsood Ahmad because he was an Ahmadi Muslim.
The spokesman for the Ahmadiyya Muslim Jamaat, Abid Khan said:
“Hatred against the Ahmadiyya Muslim Jamaat in Pakistan continues to spread and leads to such tragic incidents. Hatred and persecution of any organisation or group must be condemned by all those who believe in peace and tolerance. Such attacks serve only to destabilise society and to spread discord.”
The International Community, Media and Human Rights organisations are all urged to take action to safeguard the basic human and civil rights of Ahmadi Muslims both in Pakistan and in other countries where they face discrimination. In an era where freedom of religion and belief is accepted as a basic human right throughout the world it is of disbelief that anti-Ahmadiyya legislation is still active and indeed still being enforced in Pakistan.
Hadhrat Khalifatul Masih V (atba) mentioned in his Friday sermon on 9th March 2012,
“our brother Maqsood Ahmad sahib who had lived in Rabwah for a while was martyred in Nawabshah. His family came from a village near Qadian and his grandfather was the first Ahmadi in the family. Hadhrat Khalifatul Masih II (may Allah be pleased with him) had sent his grandfather to Sind to look after the Jama’at lands there. His grandfather too was martyred when Maqsood sahib was only twelve years old and he was an eye witness of the martyrdom. In one of his Friday sermons Hadhrat Khalifatul Masih IV (may Allah have mercy on him) had mentioned his grandfather during a discourse of early martyrs. Maqsood sahib moved to Rabwah from Sind in 1983 and was currently working in homeopathic sales in a firm called Curative Company. He had gone on a sales trip to Sind when two unknown assailants on a motor bike shot him in the centre of town. Hudhur said this is the second martyrdom in Nawabshah in the past few days. His wife has told that he was receiving threats. He was regular in offering his Salat in congregation and was also regular in financial giving. He had paid his wife’s chanda and had also paid all his chandas before leaving for his trip. He had inherited his grandfather’s enthusiasm for Tabligh and this perhaps became the cause of enmity. He was a very socialable person who was keen on serving others, had a great connection with Khilafat and had an ardent love of the Holy Qur’an. His wife had asked him if they could be included in the families of martyrs and he had answered, ‘why not, if Allah should choose them’. He leaves behind three sons and two daughters.”
