LAHORE: A 60-year-old Ahmadi was stabbed to death over ‘religious differences’ at Chenabnagar on Friday.

Police said Naseer Ahmad and his brother Munir were going for shopping in the morning when an unidentified man, who was standing at the Chenabnagar bus stand, stopped them and asked them questions about their religion. Ahmad told the man who carried a bag that they belonged to the Ahmadiyya community, police said, adding the suspect pulled out a dagger from his bag and attacked Ahmad. He died on the spot.

Police said the locals gathered and nabbed the suspect who tried to flee, and handed him over to the law enforcers.

The deceased, who belonged to Darul Rehmat Sharqi near Chenabnagar (Rabwah), has left behind a widow and three daughters to mourn.

Police shifted the body to morgue for autopsy and registered a murder case against the suspect who was identified as Hafiz Shahzad Hasan Sialvi, a resident of Sargodha’s Sillanwali area. The suspect graduated from Madrassa Anwar-ul-Quran in the area of Muhammadwala police station in 2010.

Victim’s brother Munir told Dawn that the suspect had attacked them on religious grounds and was chanting slogans in favour of the Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP). He said the suspect also raised slogans eulogising TLP founder, the late Khadim Hussain Rizvi. Munir demanded action against the people inciting religious hatred in the country.

Expressing concern and grief over the brutal murder, Ahmadiyya community spokesperson Saleemuddin said the murder of an Ahmadi in broad daylight at the hands of a religious fanatic was extremely worrisome. He said the population of Rabwah consisted of 95 per cent of Ahmadis and they were not safe.

Chiniot District Police Officer Asadur Rehman told Dawn that the suspect was arrested and the weapon had been recovered. He said a police team led by DSP Zulfiqar had been constituted to know the cause behind the killing. He said police would investigate the matter keeping in view all possibilities.

Published in Dawn, August 13th, 2022