Somebody should protect the Shias of Pakistan from extinction
R.K. Sinha
It is a matter of grave concern that more than 60 Shia worshipers were killed and over 200 injured while offering Friday prayers in a heart-wrenching suicide bombing at a Shia mosque in Peshawar, Pakistan. Almost all the unfortunate killed were said to be Shia Muslims. One cannot help but notice that the attackers specifically targeted Shia Muslims and their place of worship. Another fact that can’t be overlooked is that it has become difficult for Shia Muslims to live peacefully, even in an Islamic country such as Pakistan. They live their lives with a sword dangling over their heads, in a state of perpetual fear. That is the ground reality of Pakistan which was founded to provide a haven for Muslims or was forcibly built by Jinnah litigants.
The gruesome attack on the Shia Mosque in Peshawar is not the first of its kind. There have been constant atrocities and brutalities committed towards Shia Muslims in Pakistan. The Shias currently constitute 10 to 15 percent of the population of Pakistan. Their numbers have dwindled from 25% that stood at the time of the partition. Their community has been repeatedly falsely accused of charges of terrorist attacks and blasphemy. Certain prohibited organizations in Pakistan continue to openly demonstrate their hatred against Shia Muslims.
The majority of such demonstrations are concentrated in places like Lahore, Quetta, Peshawar, etc. Over there, distorted and provocative literature that creates an atmosphere against Shia Muslims is widespread. These unfortunate circumstances are the core reasons behind the injustices committed against the Shia community. The attacks on Shias are not a law and order issue.
However, the rulers of Pakistan believe this or pretend to do so. From the Prime Minister of Pakistan, Imran Khan to the Home Minister, Sheikh Rashid, everyone claims that those who attacked the Shia Masjid will be punished. Despite their claims, the attacks against Shias there continue to rise. If the report of the Human Rights Organizations of Pakistan is to be believed, then since 2001 till now, more than three thousand Shias have been killed in attacks and target killings. It has been observed that attacks on Shia mosques in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan provinces are persistent. It is imperative to mention that at one time, in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, there was a lot of influence of the Frontier Gandhi. But, it seems that with the passage of time, these values seemed to have been forgotten. Today there is no one to fight for the rights of Shias in Pakistan.
It is becoming increasingly hard for anyone other than Sunni Muslims to live in Pakistan. The closed society and fanatics did not spare even the great scientist of their country, Abdus Salam. Salam Saheb, who did his brilliant work in physics and guided the initial stages of Pakistan’s nuclear program, should have been the hero of Pakistan. Instead, he was mistreated and shunned because he belonged to the Ahmadiyya community. Now, traces of his name and work have been erased from the school books because he was an Ahmadiyya Muslim. His grave was disrespected and vandalized.
Ahmadiyya Muslims in Pakistan have been declared non-Islamic and are considered Kafirs. The lives of Abdus Salam and millions of other Ahmadiyya Muslims like him changed in the seventies when the Parliament of Pakistan refused to recognize Ahmadiyyas as Muslims. Ahmadiyyas believe that Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmet was the Prophet of Allah. Islam considers Prophet Muhammad to be the last Prophet and considers those who declare themselves to be Prophets after him as infidels. Would you believe that Ahmadiyya people in Pakistan have to sign an affidavit after applying for a passport that states that the founder of the Ahmadiyya sect was a fraud and that his disciples are not Muslims?
It is worth noting that the very foundation of the Ahmadiyya community was laid down on 23 March 1889 in the Qadian town of Gurdaspur, India. It is a strange coincidence that the Muslim League in Lahore was passing a resolution in favor of Pakistan after 51 years from the foundation of the Ahmadiyya sect. In this resolution, an independent Islamic country was being demanded. This dates back to March 23-24, 1940. In his infamous speech on the resolution passed in favor of the Muslim League’s demand for a separate Muslim nation, Jinnah said,“Hindu-Muslim are two separate religions. They have two distinct views. Both have different cultures, traditions, and histories. The heroes of both are also different. That’s why the two can’t live together at all.” But in the country he built after a lot of bloodsheds, only some sections of the Muslims came to be called Kafirs. Among them were Shia and Ahmadiyya. Apart from the Shias, there are many untouchables in Pakistan. The condition of Ahmadiyya, Shia Muslims, and other religious minorities such as Hindus, Sikhs, and Christians has deteriorated. The population of Hindus and Sikhs in Pakistan was around one crore in 1947. It did not include East Pakistan (now Bangladesh). However, as of now only 12 lakh Hindus and 10 thousand Sikhs remain. Where did such a massive amount of Hindus and Sikhs vanish? What happened to them?
Hindus and Sikhs are treated as second-class citizens in Pakistan. In the Sindh and Punjab provinces of Pakistan, cases of abduction and forced marriage of Hindu girls have been coming to the fore again and again. The injustice meted out to them also has a long story. Christians have also been cut like carrots and radishes. Christians are the second-largest minority group in Pakistan after Hindus. In Pakistan, 1.6 percent of the population of about 180 crores are Christians.
In the last few years, many terror attacks have been executed targeting Christians within Pakistan. In March 2015, there were two bomb blasts in the churches of Lahore, in which 14 people lost their lives. In 2013, 80 people were killed in the Peshawar church blasts. In 2009, 40 houses were torched by a mob in Punjab, killing eight people. In 2005, Christians had to flee their homes in Faisalabad, Pakistan, following rumors of burning the Quran. Violent mobs torched churches and Christian schools. Since 1990, many Christians have been convicted on charges of insulting the Quran and blaspheming the Prophet. It is indeed disheartening that one of our closest neighbors, who was separated from us in the name of religion, is so illiterate and cruel that it keeps killing its people ruthlessly.
(The writer is a senior editor, columnist, and former MP)