Kotli; March 11, 2024: AC (Assistant Commissioner) Kotli, AJK (Azad Jammu and Kashmir) had a meeting with Ahmadis of Tatta Paani and Goi sectors, and their opponents on March 11, 2024. The SHO City and the in-charge police post Goi were also present there. These officials met with the opponents of the Community first and then had a separate meeting with the Ahmadiyya delegation. In the presence of both the parties, the AC announced the following decision (translation):
- No Qadiani/Ahmadi worship place should be built in the style of a mosque. Restrictions will be imposed on (their) construction of minarets and domes, to maintain a distinction from a mosque.
- Quranic verses/Kalima Tayyaba shall not be inscribed on any Qadiani/Ahmadi worship place.
- No Qadiani/Ahmadi, according to the Constitution of Pakistan, would call oneself Muslim.
- Qadiani/Ahmadi worship places would not be referred to as masjid; “Bait-ul-Zikr” would be written outside them. Similarly, for Qadiani/Ahmadi’s cemeteries, a board identifying the graveyard as such would be installed (outside).
- Before everything else, the niche in the existing Bait-ul-Zikr will be concealed by constructing a wall so that it does not become a cause of misunderstanding for Muslims, and it should not be visible in a way that anyone, unwilling to enter it, accidentally does. Likewise, the tombstones of the graves of Ahmadis/Qadianis will also be concealed, and if not possible, Islamic symbols (verses of the Quran and Kalima Tayyaba) will be removed from them.
- Individuals belonging to the Qadiani/Ahmadi religion will be forbidden to teach compulsory Islamic studies or any Islamic content in other textbooks, in any school or college.
- Ahmadis/Qadianis will not be allowed to construct wells for non-members unless permission is obtained from the local councillor, district councillor, administration, and the DC (Deputy Commissioner).
- Affluent individuals from the Ahmadi/Qadiani community will not provide any financial assistance, whether covertly or overtly, to ordinary Muslims through any means and introduce no scheme (of benefit) to them. In a dire situation, they would have to seek permission from the local councillor, chairman union council, district councillor, or the local administration.
- Ahmadi/Qadiani students will have the freedom to continue their education, including admission and studying all subjects, including Islamic Studies, in all schools and colleges.
- People of the Ahmadi/Qadiani faith have the full right to facilities provided by the State, including education, health, security of life, property, business, etc.
- People of the Ahmadi/Qadiani community will be free to worship in their own way and lead their lives according to their teachings.
- Speeches and sermons inciting agitation and hatred in mosques and Bait-ul-Zikr will be totally avoided. However, programs or speeches about the issue of Khatme Nabuwwat may be conducted.
- Posting of hateful material on social media will be totally avoided. Likewise, both sides will refrain from shouting slogans against each other, engaging in verbal abuse, slander, or cursing.
- In case of any illegal or unethical act committed by either side, relevant state authorities will be informed in writing, instead of reacting.
- Any complaints from both sides will be referred to the administration, and the law will be applied equally to both sides. These restrictions and conditions will apply to both in Goi and Tatta Paani sectors.”
Our comment: This order of the Assistant Commissioner Kotli is a gross violation of the fundamental rights enshrined under Pakistan’s Constitution as well as it violates the commitment by the State of Pakistan under international covenants such as the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) which Pakistan ratified it in 2010. It is obvious that the AC’s order should be declared null and void for being violative of the Constitution and the law.
