At least three members of the Ahmadiyya community from Punjab’s Chakwal district have allegedly been detained “to avoid any likelihood of breach of peace”, according to the community and an administrative order.
In a statement on Tuesday, the minority community claimed that the three members were detained from Chakwal under section 3 (1) of the Punjab Maintenance of Public Order Ordinance, 1961 and they were being held in the Jhelum jail in the neihgbouring district.
They were the community’s Chakwal district president Malik Naveed Ahmad, Malik Riaz Ahmad and secretary general for affairs Malik Tahir Ahmad, Ahmadiyya community spokesperson Aamir Mahmood said.
Chakwal Deputy Commissioner Quratul Ain Malik issued the orders on Monday, he said.
The orders stated that the three people might cause “deterioration for law and order situation in the area.”
The government orders described them as “miscreants” and added that the district police officer was to prevent them from “their unlawful activities and acting in a manner prejudicial to the public safety”.
According to the community, the aforementioned community members were called in on Monday for a meeting with the DSP, SHO and Choa Saidan Shah’s assistant commissioner regarding Eidul Azha.
The Ahmadiyya community members were called to the meeting after reports said they had plans to slaughter animals on Eidul Azha.
The statement from the community suggested there were indeed such plans and the community refused to give up on the idea of slaughtering animals on Eid.
“Immense pressure was placed on the Ahmadiyya delegation not to perform the qurbani. Furthermore, while being harassed they were told to submit a surety bond stating that neither they nor any other Ahmadi in the district will perform qurbani,” said the statement by Aamir Mahmood.
The minority community delegation insisted that the law did not bar them from performing the Eid rite. The members also quoted the recent Supreme Court “judgement in the case of Tahir Naqash etc vs The State etc authored by Justice Mansoor Ali Shah where it is clearly stated that Ahmadis has the right to practice their faith within the confinement of 4 walls.”
The complainants were allowed to leave, however, the community’s delegation members were “illegally held in custody till the evening”. Later, they were “detained under section 3(1) of the MPO, 1960 for a period of 30 days in the Jhelum jail,” the community claimed.
Chakwal DC Quratul Ain Malik’s order also mentioned Monday’s meeting where the District Intelligence Committee recommended that the three persons should be detained to prevent society from their harmful activities.
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Malik wrote that she was satisfied that the community members’ detention was necessary to prevent them from acting in any manner “prejudicial to public safety.”
