Amnesty International has sent an open letter to Punjab’s provincial government accusing authorities of enabling “structural and persistent discrimination” against Pakistan’s Ahmadiyya community and warning of growing repression. The rights group says Ahmadis face ongoing harassment, unlawful limits on worship, arbitrary arrests, violence and administrative bias, with pressure intensifying around major Islamic festivals.
According to Amnesty, officials across Punjab disrupted Ahmadi religious activities during Eid al-Fitr earlier this year. The organisation reports that congregations were banned in Gujranwala, police prevented worship at six locations in Sialkot, worshippers were removed from a prayer site in Faisalabad, and several Ahmadi places of worship were sealed in Sargodha on March 21, 2026.
Amnesty frames these incidents as part of a wider pattern of state-backed intimidation. It cites findings from the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination and says dozens of Ahmadis have been arrested, detained or harassed by police during Eid celebrations in recent years. In 2025, the group says some community members were reportedly coerced into signing affidavits pledging not to perform Eid rituals.
The organisation also highlights attacks on Ahmadi graveyards, targeted killings, blasphemy allegations and sustained hate campaigns targeting Ahmadi professionals — including doctors, teachers and lawyers — which it says have fostered a climate of fear and effectively excluded the community from public life.
Amnesty further alleges that since 2024 local administrations have obstructed Ahmadi marriage registrations, refusing to recognise community-issued marriage and divorce certificates. It calls these practices violations of Pakistan’s Constitution and international human rights obligations and urges repeal or amendment of discriminatory provisions in the Pakistan Penal Code, notably Sections 295 and 298, which it says are frequently used to target Ahmadis.
The group has called on Punjab authorities to take immediate and preventive measures to protect Ahmadis’ rights to freedom of religion, peaceful assembly and equality before the law.
