Pakistan: Coordinated Campaign Seeks to Prevent Ahmadis from Observing Eid-ul-Adha
Bar associations, extremist groups and police complaint mechanisms are being used to pressure authorities to block Eid prayers, Qurbani and basic religious expression
The International Human Rights Committee (IHRC) expresses grave concern over a coordinated and escalating campaign across Pakistan aimed at preventing members of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community from observing Eid-ul-Adha, the Muslim religious observance of sacrifice.
Documents, letters, complaints and public social media material reviewed by IHRC indicate that bar associations, extremist religious groups and private complainants are placing organised pressure on police and administrative authorities to stop Ahmadis from offering Eid prayers, performing Qurbani, holding religious gatherings, delivering sermons, using Islamic expressions, or otherwise manifesting their faith.
This campaign is not isolated. Evidence has emerged from multiple jurisdictions, including Punjab, Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Azad Jammu & Kashmir. The pattern demonstrates a nationwide attempt to weaponise Pakistan’s discriminatory anti-Ahmadi laws and police mechanisms against a vulnerable religious minority during one of the most significant religious occasions of the year.
The full evidence thread, including original Urdu documents and English translations, can be viewed here:
https://x.com/faith_defence/status/2059041126128976188?s=20
IHRC notes with alarm that letters and resolutions have reportedly been issued by legal bodies including (among others) the Lahore High Court Bar Association, Karachi Bar Association, District Bar Association Khushab, District Bar Association Dadu, District Bar Association Kamber Shahdadkot, Tehsil Bar Association Zafarwal, District Bar Association Okara, Balakot Bar Association, District Bar Association Mirpur AJK and Hyderabad District Bar Association. These communications call for strict enforcement of Sections 298-B and 298-C of the Pakistan Penal Code against Ahmadis and, in several instances, specifically refer to Eid-ul-Adha, Eid prayers, Qurbani, sermons, religious gatherings and the use of Islamic expressions.
In Chakwal, an application addressed to the Deputy Commissioner reportedly requested authorities to stop Ahmadis from carrying out Islamic practices on Eid-ul-Adha. A separate Punjab Police complaint in Lawa, Chakwal, explicitly states that Ahmadis should be prevented from assembling for Eid prayers and from performing animal sacrifice.
IHRC is further concerned by extremist-linked social media posts, including material associated with Khatm-e-Nabuwwat and Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan networks, urging the public to report Ahmadis to police if they perform Qurbani or offer Eid prayers. Such messaging creates a climate of surveillance, intimidation and potential mob violence against Ahmadi families.
The targeting of Ahmadis during Eid is not merely a legal or administrative issue. It is a direct assault on freedom of religion or belief. Eid prayers, Qurbani, religious greetings and peaceful gatherings are ordinary acts of religious observance. To criminalise or obstruct these acts for Ahmadis is to deny them the most basic expression of conscience, identity and community life.
IHRC stresses that Pakistan’s anti-Ahmadi legal framework continues to enable harassment, arbitrary criminalisation and social exclusion. Sections 298-B and 298-C of the Pakistan Penal Code are repeatedly used to restrict Ahmadis from expressing their faith, while extremist actors exploit these provisions to incite fear and pressure state institutions into discriminatory action.
The involvement of bar associations is particularly troubling. Legal institutions should defend constitutional rights, due process and the rule of law. Instead, these communications appear to encourage police action against a religious minority for peaceful religious practice. This undermines the principles of justice and strengthens a culture of impunity around anti-Ahmadi persecution.
Pakistan is bound by its obligations under international human rights law, including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Freedom of religion or belief includes the right to worship, observe religious occasions, manifest belief in community with others, and be free from coercion or discrimination on religious grounds
IHRC calls upon the Government of Pakistan, provincial governments, police authorities and district administrations to ensure that Ahmadis are protected from harassment, intimidation, unlawful restrictions and mob pressure during Eid-ul-Adha.
IHRC further calls upon the authorities to:
- Ensure Ahmadis are able to observe Eid-ul-Adha peacefully and safely;
- Prevent police from acting on extremist pressure or discriminatory complaints;
- Protect Ahmadi homes, places of worship and community spaces from harassment or attack;
- Take action against incitement, threats and public calls to target Ahmadis;
- Ensure that no Ahmadi is arrested, detained, forced to sign surety bonds, or otherwise intimidated for offering Eid prayers or performing Qurbani;
- Review and repeal laws and practices that criminalise peaceful religious expression;
- Uphold Pakistan’s obligations under international human rights law.
IHRC also urges the international community, including foreign governments, UN human rights mechanisms, the UN Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief, the UN Special Rapporteur on minority issues, and relevant diplomatic missions in Pakistan, to urgently monitor the situation and raise these concerns with Pakistani authorities.
The denial of Eid observance to Ahmadis is part of a broader pattern of systematic persecution. It reflects a climate in which a religious minority is not only discriminated against in law, but is also subjected to organised social, institutional and extremist pressure.
Ahmadis must not be forced to live in fear for practising their faith. Pakistan must ensure that all citizens, regardless of belief, are protected equally under the law.
