Pre-Partition Mosque Razed After Months of Pressure from Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan
(Daska, Pakistan) – Pakistani authorities demolished a historic Ahmadi mosque in Daska, District Sialkot, on 16 January 2025, despite the local Ahmadiyya Muslim Community having complied with official instructions regarding an alleged encroachment.
The mosque, constructed before the partition of India in 1947, was built under the direction of Sir Muhammad Zafarullah Khan, Pakistan’s first foreign minister, for the worship of the local Ahmadiyya Muslim Community. It held longstanding religious and historical significance for Ahmadis in the area.
The demolition followed months of pressure from members of the Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP), who alleged that the mosque violated Pakistan’s anti-Ahmadi laws because of its minarets and demanded their removal. Local officials had reportedly acknowledged that the structure predated the 1984 anti-Ahmadi ordinance and therefore did not fall within their scope. The TLP nevertheless continued to pressure the administration to act against the site.
On 22 September 2024, the TLP organised a large protest in Daska demanding action against the place of worship. Local authorities sought to defuse the protest and reportedly assured demonstrators that the matter would be addressed. No immediate action followed, leading to renewed pressure on the district administration.
In January 2025, the local administration issued a notice under the Punjab Local Government Act alleging that the mosque’s boundary wall extended 13 feet onto a public road. The local Ahmadi community complied with the notice and removed the identified encroachment, reconstructing the wall by 15 January 2025.
Despite their compliance, authorities launched an unannounced demolition operation on 16 January under the supervision of Assistant Commissioner Maham Mushtaq. Police and municipal staff sealed access to the site and cut electricity to the mosque and the surrounding area. The demolition began at approximately 7 pm and continued until 11 pm, ending with the complete destruction of the mosque.
