On 19 September 2026, two Ahmadi Muslims—Malik Mahmood Mubarak, 70, and his son Ayaz, 40—were shot in Sargodha as they drove home. They survived. No arrests have been reported. For Ahmadi families in Punjab, survival is no longer reassurance; it is a reminder that the next attack may not miss.
Sargodha: a city that knows this script
Sargodha carries a documented record of anti‑Ahmadi violence, intimidation and mob activity. In May 2025, Dr Sheikh Muhammad Mahmood, a 58‑year‑old Ahmadi gastroenterologist, was shot dead outside Fatima Trust Hospital by a gunman who had waited for him; no prosecution has followed. Weeks before the latest shooting, on 2 September 2026, Mirza Safdar Mahmood, 65, was killed near Kot Ahmad Shah in Mandi Bahauddin while travelling to an Ahmadi place of worship. In June 2026, three Ahmadi security volunteers were shot outside the Bait‑ul‑Aqsa Mosque in Rabwah. The pattern is plain: Ahmadis are targeted in ordinary moments—on the way to work, to worship, to home—by assailants who count on impunity.
The state’s response: an FIR, not protection
Police registered a first information report on 20 September under Sections 324 and 34 of the Pakistan Penal Code, after the victims were taken to DHQ Hospital. Witnesses say the attackers fled on an unregistered motorcycle; the complainant believes he could identify them if brought forward. Yet in a climate where faith‑based killings rarely end in convictions, an FIR reads less like justice and more like paperwork. The Ahmadiyya Community has called for immediate protection, arrests and concrete measures to prevent further attacks.
Law and scripture under lock and key
Just days before the Sargodha shooting, Pakistan’s Federal Constitutional Court upheld a Punjab ban on Rohani Khazayeen, a 23‑volume collection of writings by the Ahmadiyya founder, dismissing petitions that argued the ban violated constitutional religious freedom. The court held that religious freedom is subject to law, public policy and morality, and left the 2014 forfeiture in place. For a community already criminalised for professing its faith, the message is stark: even sacred texts can be seized, while sacred lives remain unprotected.
UN warning, local silence
On 7–8 September, UN human rights experts urged Pakistan to end the persecution of Ahmadis and to “break the pattern of impunity” that allows attackers and inciters to act without restraint. They cited harassment, criminal prosecution, attacks on mosques, grave desecration and hate speech, and warned that attacks occur with “tacit official complicity.” In Sargodha, banners and stickers inciting hatred against Ahmadis appeared earlier in September, stoking fear once again.
What must change
Impunity is not an accident; it is a policy choice. Pakistan must protect Ahmadi citizens, investigate every attack promptly, prosecute perpetrators under international standards, and provide remedies to victims. It must also review laws and administrative measures that enable discrimination and incitement, including the forfeiture of religious publications. Until then, every bullet that misses today will be read as a promise for tomorrow.