1953 Lahore riots

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Lahore riots of 1953
Part of the persecution of Ahmadis in Pakistan
Badshahi Mosque July 1 2005 pic32 by Ali Imran (1).jpg
Date1 February 1953 – 14 May 1953
Location
Goals
  • Removal of Muhammad Zafarullah Khan (an Ahmadi) as Foreign Minister
  • Removal of Ahmadis from top government offices
  • Declaration of Ahmadis as non-Muslims.
Resulted inSee Aftermath section
Parties
Lead figures
Casualties and losses
2 soldiers killed, 4 injured [4]
1 police officer killed
11 killed [5]
49 wounded
Between 200 [6] and 2,000 Ahmadis killed [7]

The 1953 Lahore riots were a series of violent riots against the Ahmadiyya movement, a faith marginalized in Pakistan, mainly in the city of Lahore, as well as the rest of Punjab, which were eventually quelled by the Pakistan Army who declared two months of martial law. [6] The demonstrations began in February 1953, soon escalating into citywide incidents, including looting, arson and the murder of somewhere between 200 [6] and 2000 people. [7] Thousands more were left displaced. According to the official inquiry conducted by the Punjab Government, the actual number killed in these riots was around 20. The first page of the inquiry says that before the declaration of martial law, the police killed two people on the night of 4th March and ten the 5th. 66 people were admitted to Lahore hospitals with gunshot wounds. The military attempting to quell the disturbances in Lahore admitted to killing 11 and wounding 49. There were additional casualties in other towns. [5] Seeing that police were unable to contain the increasingly widespread unrest, Governor-General Malik Ghulam Muhammad handed over the administration of the city to the army under Major General Azam Khan, imposing martial law on 6 March.

Background

One of the major controversial differences between Ahmadis and mainstream Muslims is their different interpretations of Khatam an-Nabiyyin. Mainstream Muslims are awaiting the coming of the Mahdi and the Second Coming of Jesus and reject the claims of Mirza Ghulam Ahmad whom Ahmadis believe to be the Promised Messiah and Mahdi. The Ahmadiyya Community was a vocal proponent of the Pakistan Movement and were actively engaged with the Muslim league having strong relations with many prominent Muslim Leaguers and were opposed to the Congress backed Majlis-e-Ahrar-ul-Islam. [8] After the independence of Pakistan in 1947, Ahmadis prospered and reached many high ranking Government and Military positions in Pakistan, due to an extremely high Literacy rate. They held up stay as an important political force in Pakistan, due to its support for secularism and acted as a counterbalance to Majlis-e-Ahrar-ul-Islam. [8] This group was disillusioned and disorganized after 1947 and politically isolated. Even before partition one of its primary targets was the Ahmadiyya movement. However, in 1949, the Majlis-e-Ahrar launched countrywide campaigns and protests resulting in a ban on Majlis-e-Ahrar in 1954.

Demands and culmination

Disturbances began after an ultimatum was delivered to the Prime Minister of Pakistan on 21 January 1953 by a deputation of ulama representing Majlis-i Amal [a] constituted by an All-Pakistan Muslim Parties Convention held in Karachi from 16 to 18 January 1953. The ultimatum stated unless three demands were met:

... Majlis-e-Amal would resort to direct action (rast iqdum). [5]

Disturbances and aftermath

The ultimatum was rejected and disturbances commenced. [5]

On 6 March martial law was declared. Two people were killed by police prior to martial law and casualties "admitted by the military" caused in "quelling the disturbances in Lahore" were eleven killed and 49 wounded. [5]

Marking the military's first foray into civilian politics, the 70-day-long military deployment saw Lahore return to normalcy under Azam Khan's coherent leadership ; the Secretary General of the Awami Muslim League, Maulana Abdul Sattar Khan Niazi, was arrested and sentenced to death, but his sentence was subsequently commuted. The riots also brought unprecedented political consequences; Ghulam Muhammad first dismissed Mian Mumtaz Daultana from the post of Chief Minister of Punjab on 24 March, allegedly for manipulating the religious element in anti-Ahmadi violence for political benefits. Next on 17 April, using his special powers under the Government of India Act 1935, Ghulam Muhammad dismissed Prime Minister Khwaja Nazimuddin and the entire federal cabinet. Pakistan's ambassador to the United States, Muhammad Ali Bogra replaced him. Bogra, who did not know why he was being called back, took the oath as new Prime Minister within hours of Nazimuddin's dismissal.[ citation needed ]

In March 1953, several instigators of the riots, including, Abul Ala Maududi, Mawlana Amin Hussain Islahi, Malik Nasrullah Khan Azeez, Syed Naqiullah, Chaudhry Muhammad Akbar Sialkoti and Mian Tufail Mohammad were arrested and sent to the Central Jail Lahore. [9]

On 19 June 1953 a Court Of Inquiry was established to look into disturbances, known as the Punjab Disturbances Court Of Inquiry. The inquiry commenced on 1 July and held 117 sittings. The evidence was concluded on 23 January 1954 and arguments in the case lasted to 28 February 1954. Conclusions were formulated and the report issued 10 April 1954. [5]

Timeline

Notes

  1. council of action

References

  1. "The Vangaurd of the Islamic Revolution".
  2. "جب مولانا مودودی قرآن پاک اٹھائے پھانسی گھر روانہ ہوئے". 22 September 2014.
  3. "مولانا مودودی رحمۃ اللہ علیہ". 22 September 2021.
  4. 1 2 3 4 PAKISTAN. — Riots against Ahmadiya Sect in Karachi, Lahore, and Rawalpindi.- Demand for Resignation of Sir Zafrulla Khan.- Government Denunciation of Ahrars.- Student Riots in Karachi. Keesing's Contemporary Archives: Weekly Diary of World Events: 1952-1954. 21–28 March 1953. p. 12835.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Report of the Court of Inquiry - Introductory". The persecution.org. 10 April 1954. Retrieved 13 January 2014.
  6. 1 2 3 Ali Kadir (4 July 2014). "Parliamentary Heretization of Ahmadiyya in Pakistan". In Gladys Ganiel (ed.). Religion in Times of Crisis. Brill. p. 139. ISBN   9789004277793 . Retrieved 30 October 2014.
  7. 1 2 Blood, Peter R., ed. (December 1996). Pakistan: A Country Study. Diane Publishing Company. p. 217. ISBN   9780788136313 . Retrieved 30 October 2014. In order to rid the community of what it considered to be deviant behavior, the JI waged a campaign in 1953 against the Ahmadiyya community in Pakistan that resulted in some 2,000 deaths, brought on martial law rule in Punjab, ...
  8. 1 2 "Persecution of the Ahmadiyya Community in Pakistan: An Analysis Under International Law and International Relations" (PDF). Harvard Human Rights Journal. 16. September 2003. Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 March 2005.
  9. "جب مولانا مودودی قرآن پاک اٹھائے پھانسی گھر روانہ ہوئے". Nawaiwaqt (in Urdu). 22 September 2014. Retrieved 12 July 2024.
  10. "07 Mar 1953 - Martial Law After Lahore Riots". nla.gov.au. 7 March 1953.
  11. Nazir Hussain Chaudhri B.A., LL.B. (1973). Chief Justice Muhammad Munir: His Life, Writings, and Judgements. Research Society of Pakistan. p. 237.
  12. Khalid B. Sayeed (May 1959). Martial Law Administration in Pakistan. Institute of Pacific Relations. p. 73.
  13. Hasan Askari Rizvi (1976). The Military and Politics in Pakistan. Progressive Publishers. p. 81.