PAKISTAN continues to face global condemnation for its deep-rooted religious intolerance, as highlighted in a recent country update, citing the US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF). The report denounces Pakistan’s systematic persecution of the Ahmadiyya Muslim community and the alarming increase in forced conversions andblasphemy-relatedviolence across the country, as reported by ‘Rabwah Times’. According to‘RabwahTimes’, Pakistan’s Penal Code openly discriminates againstAhmadis, barring them from identifying as Muslims or practising their faith publicly.

 

The USCIRF report documented a disturbing surge in violence against Ahmadis in 2025, including the demolition of three Ahmadi mosques in Punjab within a span of ten days in February. In April, a mob of over 400 attacked another Ahmadi mosque and brutally lynched Laeeq Cheema, an Ahmadi activist who had been documenting previous assaults. Police later arrested 13 individuals linked to the killing. In Karachi, two Ahmadi men were attacked inside a courtroom in March, leading to the death of one, Tahir Mahmood. In another tragic case, an Ahmadi named Sheikh Mahmoodwas gunneddownin Sargodhaafterreceivingrepeated death threats.

 

The report further revealed how authorities in Punjab excluded Ahmadis from property auctions and even registeredcases against 42members for praying in a private home. During Eid, courts ordered police to stop Ahmadis from congregating, resulting in the arrest of 22 worshippers in Sialkot. Forced conversions of Hindu and Christian girls persist in Sindh and Punjab, often involving abduction, coercion, and forced marriage. Legal reforms remain limited to Islamabad, with conservative religiousbodiesdismissingnew laws as“un-Islamic,” as citedby Rabwah Times. 

 

 

A DISTURBING incident of caste-based discrimination has surfaced in Kotri, Sindh, whereayoung man from the Hindu Bagri community was brutally assaulted for dining at a local dhaba, as reported by ‘The Express Tribune’. According to ‘The Express Tribune’,the victim,identified as Dolat Bagri, had gone to a roadsideeatery forlunchwhen the hotel owner and several others objected to his presence.Thegroupreportedly tied Dolat’s hands and feet withrope,beathimmercilessly, and looted Rs 60,000 from his pockets. Despite his pleas for mercy, the assailants continued to attack him for “daring to eat there”.Avideo of the assaultlaterwentviralonsocial media,promptingoutrageand calls for justice. Following the uproar, Kotri police registered a case on Dolat’s complaint against seven accused,Fayyaz Ali,ArshadAli,MoeenAli,Shafi Muhammad, Niaz, Dar Muhammad,andIkram,along with the hotel owner. 

 

 

THE discovery of four bodies across Balochistan this week has reignited outrage over the ongoing wave of enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings in the province. Families and rights groups have blamed Pakistani security forces and state-backed militias forwhat theydescribe as systematic violence against civilians. The victims had been missing for several days before theirbodieswere recovered, as reported by The Balochistan Post. According to ‘The Balochistan Post’, three men identified asQuddousBaloch, son of Umaid; Neik Saal Baloch, son of Dilwash; and Nazar ArzMuhammad, son of Arz Muhammad, were found dead in the Sorap Dam area of Buleda in Kech district. All three were drivers engagedincross-border trade. Their families stated that on September 30,Pakistani security forces and members of a pro-government militia, locally known as a “death squad,” detained them. The next day, on October 1, their bullet-riddledbodieswerediscovered.