The Qadian Diary

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About the Author Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad MA ra was the son of the founder of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad as of Qadian.Born on April 20 1893, he passed his matriculation with distinction in 1910, before completing a Masters degree in Arabic in 1916.Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad ra was a renowned religious scholar and writer.His notable works include The Life & Character of the Seal of Prophets , an extensive biography of the Holy Prophet of Islam sa , and Our God , an expansive study into the question of the existence of God.He was also a prolific public speaker and would regularly deliver an address at the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community’s annual gathering, the Jalsa Salana.Alongside his scholarly pursuits, Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad ra devoted his life to the work of the community and served the movement with distinction in various capacities from the age of 18, including as the editor of the Review of Religions and the newspaper Alfazl , and as Nazir Amoor-e-Ama, Nazir Taleem, and acting Nazir-e-Aala.

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The Qadian Diary An Account of Displacement, Violence, & Bloodshed

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The Qadian Diary An Account of Displacement, Violence, & Bloodshed Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad MA A TRANSLATION

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The Qadian Diary An Account of Displacement, Violence & Bloodshed By Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad MA Present English Edition: UK 2023 ©Islam International Publications Ltd.No part of this book may be reproduced or used in any form or by any means graphic, electronic or mechanical, including photography, recording, copying or information storage and retrieval systems without permission of the publisher.Published by: Printed and bound by: ISBN:

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Contents Map of Qadian i Map of District Gurdaspur iii Note v Foreword vii 1 Eyewitness Testimonies 29 Letters, Correspondence, and Articles 41 Figures and Tables 101 Glossary 115

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Note The words in the text in regular brackets ( ) and in between the long dashes—are the words of the author and if any explanatory words or phrases are added by the translator for the purpose of clarification, they have been placed in square brackets [ ].The name of Muhammad sa , the Holy Prophet of Islam, has been followed by the abbreviation sa , which is an abbreviation for the salutation Sallallahu ‘Alaihi Wasallam (may peace and bless- ings of Allah be upon him).The names of other prophets and messengers are followed by the abbreviation as , a short-form of ‘Alaihis-Salam (on whom be peace).The abbreviation ra stands for Radi Allahu ‘anhu, ‘ anha, ‘anhum (may Allah be pleased with him, with her, with them) and is used with the names of the companions of the Holy Prophet sa and those of the Promised Messiah as.These salutations have not generally been set out in their entirety, but they should nevertheless be understood as being repeated in full in each case.Because of their frequency of use and for ease of reading, Islamic terms such as hadith or umma have, or other foreign words which are mainly derived from Arabic, Urdu, and Hindi have for the most part not been italicised or transliterated in the main body of the text.Anyone interested in the correct pronunciation of these words can refer to the glossary at the end of the book.

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vi All English renditions of the verses of the Holy Qur’an have been taken from the 2004 edition of Maulawi Sher Ali’s translation.

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Foreword In March 1947, the communal violence that had been sweeping across British controlled India, broke out in the Punjab as uncertainty over the future boundaries of the province sparked agitations across sectarian lines.As in Bengal, the violence was especially intense with the Punjab also set to be divided in the mooted partition of the country.Well-organised and motivated militias, often roused and deployed by local power brokers to help further the territorial and political goals of their respective communities, unleashed waves of carnage that historians would go on to describe as a mutual genocide.The situation in the Punjab was made even more complicated as it involved not just Hindu and Muslim communities, but also Sikhs who were determined to keep the entirety of their population together within the same country.As a means to this end, Sikh leaders incited violence in order to maintain or establish their numerical superiority in certain areas of the province.On 17 August, two days after the Partition, the Radcliffe Com- mission formally announced the future borders of the newly inde- pendent states of India and Pakistan.The final boundary, known as the Radcliffe award, demarcated between Indian and Pakistani portions of the Punjab and Bengal according to the religious de- mography of the provinces.However, despite the original mandate of the Commission to determine contiguous majority areas of re- ligious groups, the partition of the two provinces still left millions

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viii of Muslims on the Indian side, and similar numbers of Hindus situated in Pakistan, sparking a new and terrifying chain of blood- shed and mass migration which turned the Punjab in particular into the epicentre of the Partition era disturbances.Communities that had once coexisted for centuries turned against each other in terrifying acts of sectarian violence.Murderous gangs attacked convoys of people fleeing across the new border; whole villages were set on fire; and other atrocities such as forced conversions, abductions, and acts of sexual savagery blighted the province.According to some estimates by 1948, when the chaos had finally begun to subside, more than 15 million people had been uprooted, almost a million people had been killed in sectarian violence, and also from diseases that ravaged through makeshift refugee camps, and some seventy-five thousand women had been raped.No place was spared, including the then headquarters of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community and the birthplace of the founder of the movement, the town of Qadian.It was against this backdrop that Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad MA ra , a son of the founder of the community, began to keep a regular diary of the Partition era disturbances.Spanning from March 1947 to February 1948 the diary charts the violence and horrors that gripped the Punjab in the lead up to the Partition, and Qadian and the areas surrounding it in particular.While the initial outbreak of violence did not reach the town, events took a dramatic turn after the announcement of the Radcliffe Award.There had existed a general assumption that Gurdaspur, the district Qadian is situated in, would fall within the territory of Pakistan, and indeed according to most contemporary accounts from the time Sir Cyril Radcliffe, the chairman of the Boundary Commission, had originally earmarked the district for the new Muslim-majority nation.A last minute change of heart, however,

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ix which has since become the subject of fierce historical debate, saw Gurdaspur form part of independent India.The announcement of the Radcliffe Award threw Gurdaspur and other border districts into turmoil, and as a Muslim majority dwelling situated within the border of India, Qadian was especially vulnerable.As a first hand witness to these events Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad ra , catalogued the brutalities committed in Qadian in precise and unflinching detail in a regular series of diary entries.There are stories of dead bodies strewn across the streets of Qadian and its environs; the ransacking of Muslim properties including the home of Sir Chaudhry Zafarullah Khan; the creation of makeshift refugee camps across the town; bomb attacks on the central mosque of Qadian, Masjid Aqsa; and other horrifying acts of violence that left multitudes of people dead.The diary also records other moments of great historical significance such as the departure from Qadian of the then head of the community, Hazrat Mirza Bashir-ud-Din Mahmud Ahmad ra , which represented the last time a khalifa of the movement would reside in Qadian.On 23 September, the author of the diary Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad ra also left Qadian for the last time.However, this did not signal an end to the diary, and he continued to make regular updates to it based off reports received from Qadian.Originally written in Urdu as it eventually came to be known has been translated into English in various guises.Most notably an abridged English rendition of the diary was included in an information booklet titled Qadian—A Test Case which was sent to various government departments and foreign embassies to apprise them of the hardships suffered by the residents of Qadian during the disturbances and which listed certain demands of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community with regards to various injustices they had faced and the new political

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x reality of the subcontinent.The current edition is a full translation of the original diary which in Urdu came to be known as اہچم ن اظممل اقد�یان اک وخین روز�.It also includes a series of pictures from that time which were collected from various people, and are contained within one of the earliest handwritten copies of the diary.Owing to their graphic nature, not all of the images have been included in this volume, although the ones that have been selected are being published before a gen- eral audience for the first time.Similarly, an eyewitness testimony regarding the entry of 7 September 1947 has also been translat- ed and included here.Other additional materials include letters and correspondence written by the community administration to various government officials in India, as well as a series of statisti- cal tables detailing the loss of life and destruction in Qadian and its surrounding area.These were first published in the aforemen- tioned booklet Qadian—A Test Case and have been added to this edition in their original form, without any allowance made for the amendment of spellings, grammatical mistakes, or other such linguistic errors.

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1 The Indian subcontinent has long been a crucible of communal tension, but over the past year this unrest has reached new and terrible heights, gradually intensifying as the time of the Partition drew closer.The violence which broke out in central Punjab in March of 1947 was yet another sordid episode of this horrifying escalation.Much of these disturbances were the result of the Hindu political class aligning themselves with the Sikhs to terrorise the Muslim population of the Punjab in order to suppress any ambitions the Muslims had of creating their own homeland, even as the latter were growing in the conviction that it was impossible for them to prosper and promote their legitimate interests in an undivided subcontinent.This created an irreconcilable divide between the two communities.On the one side were the Muslims who were increasingly given over to the pursuit of partition and self-autonomy, and on the other the Hindus, who fuelled by a sense of their own power and dominance, had determined themselves to prevent the division of the country and the creation of an independent Muslim state.It was within this highly charged arena that the Radcliffe Commission set the entire Punjab ablaze with communal conflict through the announcement of the boundary award which deter- mined the future borders of East and West Punjab.As a result of this decision, the Punjab became the home of such unspeakable

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 2 terror, that history will forever remember the horrors committed on this land as marking one of the darkest chapters of human history.The forced migration of tens of millions of refugees across the subcontinent was in itself a catastrophe without historical parallel.But when one looks back over the dreadful circumstances under which this migration took place, they can only bow their head in shame.Every year the Hindus of India celebrate Holi by spraying each other with red water, but in the last 12 months, millions of people soaked the land of this region with the red of their blood as hundreds of thousands of innocent people were murdered in the mass displacement of the Partition.Thousands of women were abducted and raped, thousands of children were murdered in the presence of their mothers, thousands of mothers were killed in front of their weeping children, and property worth many millions of rupees was looted and burnt to the ground.Amidst all these tragedies, the present account relates specifical- ly to Qadian, the sacred headquarters of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, which also suffered the same terrible fate as the rest of the country despite its long tradition of peacefulness and loyalty.Almost 450 years ago, our ancestors migrated to this region from Samarqand and Bukhara in the time of the Mughal Emperor Babar, and founded the village of Qadian some 70 miles north-east of Lahore.During the rule of the Mughals our family was held in high esteem.Therefore, when the Mughal Empire declined and the Sikhs seized control of central Punjab, one of their first targets was the estate of Qadian.At the beginning of the 19 th century, our elders were forced to leave Qadian for the first time and made to live as refugees for a time.When Maharaja Ranjit Singh finally fought off rival Sikh confederacies and established his empire over

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3 the Punjab, our grandfather, Mirza Ghulam Murtaza Khan, was able to return to Qadian with Ranjit Singh’s permission.Though stripped of much of the old family glory, Mirza Ghulam Murtaza became duly loyal to the rulers of the land, in order to preserve the peace of the country and in accordance with the long held traditions of our family.In 1889, our esteemed father, Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad as , announced his claim as the Promised Messiah, Mahdi, and re- former of the latter days under direct commandment from God and set about establishing the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community.From this time on, Qadian became a place of great sanctity.And by this I do not mean that it is a town of a great many mosques, and while places of worship are undoubtedly sanctified, the blessedness of this dwelling comes from it being the birthplace of a chosen one of God, the place where he lived, and his final resting ground.Here he spent his days and nights in prayer and meditation, and it was in this dwelling that God manifested many of His signs.Our holy founder established this movement after direct guidance from God, and it was through divine revelation from God that he named Qadian as the permanent centre of the movement.Today, those institutions, which are responsible for the spiritual, religious, and cultural life of the Ahmadi community all over the world, are located in this town.When the holy founder of the community passed away in 1908, and the responsibility for leading the movement passed into the hands of the First Khalifa, and then after that to the Second Khalifa, Qadian continued to remain the headquarters of the community.Qadian is not the epicentre of the community simply because of its historical significance.Instead, this dwelling was preordained as the home for an international religious movement, from where the responsibility of guiding and leading branches of the com- munity all over the world could be exercised.Ahmadis are not

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 4 political agitators or insurgents.Nor is the community a party of violent radicals.Instead they are a peace loving and religiously minded people devoted to spiritual and scholarly pursuits.Many Ahmadis have turned their backs on regular vocations and have instead given themselves over to the pursuit of religious work.And yet in these remorseless days, even such a community and its historic headquarters have been subjected to unspeakable violence.These events are briefly set out in the following pages.This is a story of how we were made to suffer at the hands of this world.We now await the judgment of God, which will arrive at its own time, for as God has said in the Qur’an.3 َو ُۃَبِقاَعْلا َنْیِقَّتُمْلِل.2 َواَل َلِّدَبُم ِتٰمِلَكِل ِهّٰللاِ.1 َبَتَک ُہّٰللا َّنَبِلْغَاَل اَنَا َوْيِلُسُر March 1947 Communal violence breaks out in the Punjab including in two of the largest cities of the province, Lahore and Amritsar, and spreads terror in the hearts of the people.Sikh militias prepare for further agitations.24 July 1947 A train bound for Qadian is attacked by a group of armed Sikhs at Wadala Granthian, around six miles from the town.One man is killed and numerous others are injured.The incident takes place on the night between 24 and 25 July.1 Allah has decreed: ‘Most surely I will prevail, I and My Messengers.’ Surah Al- Mujadalah, 58:22.[Publishers] 2 There is none that can change the words of Allah.Surah Al-An'am, 6:35.[Publishers] 3 And the end is for the righteous.Surah Al-Qasas, 28:84.[Publishers]

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5 12 August 1947 Railway and postal services are suspended in Qadian.Soon after the telegraph is shut down too and then the phone lines, leaving the 18,000 residents of Qadian, 95 per cent of whom are Ahmadi Muslims, cut off from the outside world.17 August 1947 The decision of the Boundary Commission is announced and Gurdaspur, despite being a Muslim majority district, is placed within the union of India and with that Qadian comes under a heavy trial from God.18 August 1947 Sikh militias begin to conduct raids in Gurdaspur committing murder, loot, arson and abduction.These attacks quickly esca- late.Muslims are driven out of their homes and villages across the district.Approximately 500,000 Muslims including 70,000 Ahmadis find themselves displaced in three subdivisions of Gur- daspur.There is widespread killing, loot, arson and abduction and numerous cases of forced conversions.19 August 1947 In the area surrounding Qadian, Sikh militias block all canal bridges and routes leading to the town.It is no longer safe to freely move around.21 August 1947 The Ahmadi village of Winjwan, which is situated to the west of Qadian, comes under Sikh attack.Fifty people are killed and 39

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 6 injured.The remaining residents of the village are forced to flee their homes.22 August 1947 An Ahmadi missionary, Major Chaudhry Sharif Ahmad Bajwa LLB is arrested on false charges under the Safety Ordinance.23 August 1947 In the presence of the military and police, a militia of several thousand Sikhs attacks the Ahmadi village of Faizullah Chak, situated to the north of Qadian, where the Muslim residents of several surrounding dwellings had taken refuge.Many Ahmadi and non-Ahmadi Muslims are killed in the attack and a great number of Muslim women are abducted.The entire village and the surrounding area is cleansed of Muslims.The driver of an Ahmadi who went to the village to gather information is shot and injured and the automobile is seized.25 August 1947 Ahmadi women begin to be evacuated from Qadian for Lahore.The first convoy to leave Qadian today includes Hazrat Ummul Mu’minin (the Mother of the Faithful), and a number of other ladies belonging to the family of the Promised Messiah as.Two private planes belonging to the Ahmadiyya Community, which have been making flights from Qadian to Lahore, are banned from flying over the Gurdaspur area without due reason.These planes were one of the last means of communication between Qadian and the outside world.

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7 31 August 1947 On the advice of its members, the head of the Ahmadiyya Com- munity departs from Qadian to Lahore at 1.15pm under the escort of Captain Malik Ata Ullah.The party reach Lahore that same evening.I, Mirza Bashir Ahmad, the author of this diary am ap- pointed as the local amir in Qadian.2 September 1947 The village of Sathiali, where a number of Muslims have taken sanctuary, is attacked by Sikhs and an Ahmadi man, Muhammad Ashraf, is killed.4 September 1947 Seven Ahmadi residents of the villages of Bagol and Khushalpur, which lie over the canal bridge to the east of Qadian, are shot dead by the Kahnuwan police without warrant or cause.6 September 1947 An Ahmadi belonging to the village of Muradpur, to the south of Qadian, is killed by Sikhs.Several other Ahmadis have their possessions plundered.7 September 1947 Three young Ahmadis travelling from Qadian to Gurdaspur to deliver an important memo to the deputy commissioner of the district are arrested for being dressed in khakis and their motorcycle is seized.

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 8 9 September 1947 A banning order on Jeeps is issued in Qadian and its surroundings.Since the majority of vehicles owned by Ahmadis in the area are of this make, the restriction has put a stop to almost all movement and travel by members of the community.11-12 September 1947 Almost 50,000 displaced Muslim villagers have sought refuge in Qadian.Every home, garden, park, open space, road, and street in the town has become a makeshift refugee camp.Thousands of these refugees are receiving meals from the community’s public kitchen.12 September 1947 The military contingent posted in Qadian begins searching people evacuating the town.This includes confiscating licensed weapons from evacuees.Sometimes these inspections last for up to five to six hours, putting both women and children to great difficulty.These searches are being conducted despite the fact that both governments have agreed not to check outgoing refugees, unless they have justified cause to suspect them.13 September 1947 Under Section 302, Chaudhry Fateh Muhammad Sial MA, the community’s director of preaching, is arrested without due cause or justification.14 September 1947 Syed Zain ul Abideen Walliullah Shah, the community’s director

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9 of general affairs is also arrested under Section 302 on false allegations.16 September 1947 Mohalla Islamabad near the DAV High School in Qadian comes under a Sikh attack.Muhammad Sharif Ahmadi is killed in the onslaught.17 September 1947 The local amir in Qadian, [that is myself ], visits the final resting place of the holy founder of the community with a party of his companions.There we offer a collective prayer, seeking protection from God for the headquarters of the community against attack from its enemies, and beseech our Lord to bestow us with patience and relief if any such attack is decreed by Him.18 September 1947 Respected Mirza Sharif Ahmad (the younger brother of the head of the community) leaves Qadian for Lahore by motor convoy on account of his health.The Ahmadi village of Khara, which lies to the east of Qadian, comes under attack from thousands of Sikhs who are aided and abetted by the Hindu military.Several Muslims are injured and villagers are forced to flee the area on the morning of 19 September.19 September 1947 Sikhs attack Mohallah Darul Sa’at with the aid of the police and clear the area of any Ahmadis.The Ahmadi village of Nangal Bagbana near the holy cemetery

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 10 of Bahishti Maqbara also comes under Sikh attack with the help of the police and the Ahmadis there are forced to flee.20 September 1947 Police aid Sikh militias in attacking the sub-village of Qadirabad, which is situated within the revenue estate of Qadian, and the residents there are forced to flee.Hindu military personnel posted in Qadian obstruct efforts to seat people in the convoys sent by the Pakistani government to evacuate people from Qadian.This results in one convoy departing without full occupancy, and another convoy departs without any seats having been taken up at all, making it increasingly difficult to evacuate women and children from the town.21 September 1947 Chaudhry Abdul Bari BA, an assistant finance secretary of the community, is arrested on false charges under the Safety Ordinance while driving from Qadian to Lahore.His vehicle containing various personal valuables is seized.A curfew is imposed on Qadian without due cause or reason.At first the curfew lasts from 6pm in the evening to 5am in the morning, however, later on these hours are extended.Eventually the police begin to impose a curfew at any time of their choosing even during the day.However, Hindus and Sikhs are permitted to carry on with their day-to-day activities unhindered.22 September 1947 Police and military personnel conduct a search of the homes and offices of the head of the Ahmadiyya Community, the Tehrik-e- Jadid office, as well as the home of his younger brother, that is the

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11 author of this diary.The search lasts from 6am to 11am.Armed police and military fill out across all the rooms of these properties.They break the locks of any trunks, cabinets, cases, and wardrobes, and carefully search through their contents.In some rooms they dig up the floors in case anything is buried below.They move through these properties at will without a search warrant.They also enter the female chambers without making their presence known or allowing the women time to veil themselves.At the end of their search they do not find anything incriminating, but still make away with any legally licensed firearms they can get their hands on including a licensed shotgun belonging to the head of the community, a licensed 22-bore rifle belonging to Khan Muhammad Ahmad Khan, and a licensed revolver belonging to Mirza Hameed Ahmad.As of the time of writing, none of these weapons have been returned.23 September 1947 The head of the community instructs Mirza Bashir Ahmad, the author of this diary, to leave Qadian for Lahore.I am escorted there by Major Mirza Daud Ahmad.Mirza Aziz Ahmad MA is appointed the local amir in Qadian.24 September 1947 The authorities conduct a search of Al-Nusrat located in Mohalla Darul Anwaar, which is the home of the principal of the Talimul- Islam College and the eldest son of the head of the community, Mirza Nasir Ahmad MA.Nothing incriminating is found.The police search multiple homes in Mohalla Darul Shukar.Nothing is found, but they still make away with many personal possessions worth thousands of rupees.They also take with them

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 12 five refugee girls who are eventually returned to their families.25 September 1947 Four Muslim refugees who had taken shelter in Ashiana Mubarak, a home situated near Mohalla Darul Anwaar, are shot dead by the police and their female relatives are taken away.Two other men are missing and several others are injured.This incident takes place on the night between September 25 and 26.27 September 1947 Sikh militias assisted by the police plunder almost 5000 herd of cattle belonging to displaced refugees sheltering in Qadian and worth almost 2 million rupees.A large number of pushcarts are also forcibly taken, even though many of these refugees have nothing else by which to transport their possessions.Cattle belonging to local Ahmadis is also seized.27 September - 1 October 1947 Over a period of five days, the police ransack the residence of Sir Muhammad Zafarullah Khan in Mohalla Darul Anwaar.Everything is seized except for a few pieces of furniture.Military trucks come in at night to help take away the possessions.Those who register their complaints against this action are threatened.Any cattle stabled in the premises is also carried away.29 September 1947 During an evacuation of Qadian, military personnel seize licensed arms from Khan Sahib Maulawi Farzand Ali, a former imam of the London Mosque; Captain Umar Hayat, a government pensioner;

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13 and Sheikh Niaz Muhammad, a retired inspector of police.These weapons are seized in contempt of a clear agreement between the two new dominions that the licensed arms of refugees would not be taken.Law enforcement authorities arrest Maulawi Ahmad Khan Nasim, a scholar of Arabic and the missionary in charge of over- seeing local preaching efforts of the community.Another Arabic scholar, Maulawi Abdul Aziz, who has been acting as a liaison between the community and the police, is also taken into custody.These arrests are made under Sections 396 and 397 of the IPC and are without cause or warrant.According to reports, both men are severely mistreated during their custody.Several homes in Mohalla Darul Anwaar are looted.These include the properties of Colonel Dr Attaullah, the Assistant Director of General of the Medical Service of Pakistan: Khan Bahadur Chaudhry Abul Hashim MA, a retired inspector of schools; and Maulawi Abdul Rahim Dard MA a former imam of the London Mosque.30 September 1947 The police forbid local sweepers from cleaning the homes of Muslims, thereby increasing the disquiet and misery of Muslim households.1 – 6 October 1947 Military personnel in Batala prevent a convoy sent by the Pakistani government from proceeding to Qadian, under the pretext that the road to the town is being repaired.Sikh militias and non-Muslim soldiers of the Indian army attack another convoy that is already in Batala, and which includes the son of the author of this diary,

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 14 Mirza Munir Ahmad.He is detained in Batala for two days and is witness to the horrors that take place there.By the grace of God no harm comes to him and he arrives in Lahore on the third day.A truck is also set on fire.Several people are injured and others are missing.The claim that the road to Qadian is under repair is false.It seems from this that an attack on the Ahmadis of Qadian is imminent, and in preparation for this measures are being taken to prevent there being outside witnessess to any massacre.As events unfold, Qadian experiences the worst of the violence of these disturbances in the following days.1 October 1947 The military in Qadian takes forcible possession of Bait-ul-Hamd , a home belonging to the head of the Ahmadiyya Community where several of his children live.2 October 1947 The authorities close down all Ahmadi owned flourmills in Qadian, causing thousands of Ahmadis, including elderly men, women and children to survive on boiled wheat.These conditions last for several days and many people are struck by diarrhoea.Ahmadis are turned out of the Talimul-Islam Degree College and the Fazle Umar Research Institute.Property and apparatus worth a significant amount is forcibly confiscated by the military.With the help of the police, Sikh militias attack Mohalla Darul Raahat.A group of them even force their way into Mohalla Masjid Fazal and engage in widespread pillaging.Here it ought to be noted that Darul Raahat should not be confused with Mohalla Darul Rahmat.The former is adjacent to and situated

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15 to the southwest of the old part of Qadian, and close to Mohalla Darul Sihat.Sikh militias attack the Ahmadi village of Bhaini Bangar, near Darul Barakat and Darul Anwaar.The Indian military is present but do nothing to stop the attack beyond firing several rounds of bullets into the air.The night between 2-3 October echoes with the sound of gunfire.Many men are injured and numerous women are abducted.The entire population of the village is evacuated the next day.During the same night, a bomb is thrown in the central mosque of Qadian, Masjid Aqsa.4 The Minaratul Masih is situated in the courtyard of the mosque.The explosive is hurled from a nearby Hindu residence.The son of the muezzin is injured in the explo- sion.This attack is yet another reminder that not only is the other side determined to kill Muslims, but is also intent on degrading them, and destroying their property and places of worship.3 October 1947 This day will forever be remembered as one of the darkest chapters in the history of Qadian, as the ferocity of the disturbances reaches its peak.Violence flares up between eight and nine o' clock in the 4 Amarnath Depot Holders threw an explosive device at Labhu Charandas Barahman’s balcony, which is northeast of the Aqsa mosque.Nasir Ahmad son of the muezzin of the mosque, suffered injuries on his left arm from the resulting explosion.Fortunately, of the four explosives thrown only one managed to detonate.On October 10, at about eight or nine o’clock in the morning, a an explosive device was thrown near the grave of the father of the Promised Messiah as , Mirza Ghulam Murtaza, but failed to explode.No casualties were reported.On the same day during the call to zuhr prayers, eight shots were fired from the house of the goldsmith, Ajagar Singh, at the balcony of Labhu Charandas.A bullet missed the armpit of the muezzin Mian Sirajuddin, but grazed his ear lobe.No casualties were reported.Mian Sirajuddin, thinking he was about to be killed started reciting the shahada.[Publishers]

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 16 morning.A Sikh militia comprised of many thousands of people raids the Fazal Mosque from the west of Qadian in the presence of the police.As it advances through the town many people are killed in its wake.Eventually the militia reaches the back of Masjid Aqsa where a large number of women have taken refuge.Many of the females gathered there are carried off by the Sikhs.Hearing their cries for help, a number of local Ahmadis race to their assistance.Two of them are shot dead by the police, close to the outer wall of the mosque.During this time, other militias numbering several thousands of people begin to attack mohallas Darul Rahmat and Darul Futuh.The Police enact a curfew in Qadian, but this only assists and enables the militias further.As the raids continue, close to two hundred Muslims (including Ahmadis and other denominations, as well as men, women, and children) are killed, or are otherwise missing and are still to be accounted for.One of those killed is Mirza Ahmad Shafee BA, who was an uncle of the wife of the head of the community.He was standing watch outside of his home as the women of the family kept sanctuary inside when he was shot dead by a police constable.The police refuse to let the community gather up the bodies of the murdered Ahmadis so that they can be given a Muslim burial.It seems as though this is part of a plan to cover up the number of people killed and keep their identities hidden.During these raids, Sikh militias freely loot Ahmadi homes without recrimination or reprisal.By most estimates they make off with hundreds of thousands of rupees worth of goods and possessions.The situation deteriorates to such an extent that local Ahmadi leaders residing in the outskirts of Qadian, decide to assemble all the members of the community in their areas into designated centres so that women and children, who would have otherwise been fully exposed to attack, are better able to be

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17 protected.One group is brought together in the boarding house of the Talimul-Islam High School.A similar number of people are gathered in the homes of the head of the Ahmadiyya Community and his relatives as well as in Madrasa Ahmadiyya and the houses around it.In this way, thousands of Ahmadis are packed into buildings that could otherwise only accommodate a few hundred people.Every day these buildings are deluged with night soil, which young Ahmadis laboriously sweep away in the morning.As Ahmadi flour mills are closed, the people encamped in these buildings are forced to live on boiled wheat, although a small amount of ground wheat is made available for the sick, elderly, and for nursing mothers through the efforts of Ahmadi volunteers who grind the wheat for them.Owing to the precarious security situation, during this period, there is no communication between the two camps.When people do try to venture out they are shot at.Darul Salam as well as the homes of the late Nawab Muhammad Ali Khan and Captain Mirza Sharif Ahmad are forcibly taken possession of.4 October 1947 A foot convoy of almost 40,000 Muslims sets off from Qadian under an Indian military escort.However, within undertaking six miles of their journey they are attacked by Sikh militias.Many hundreds of people are killed and numerous women are abducted.Whatever belongings they were carrying are taken from them.Those on the ground claim that for days the bodies of the dead lay strewn on the side of the canal for many miles.The curfew placed over Qadian is lifted for a short period of time.Some Ahmadis venture out to other parts of the town to

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 18 see what has become of their property.However, one such group comes under fire at the open space towards the end of the main market area referred to as Reti Challa and seven people lose their lives.This attack takes place in the middle of the day.Among those killed are Mian Sultan Alam BA, assistant secretary of ziafat.Those Ahmadis who try to retrieve their bodies are also fired upon.The Star Hoisery in Qadian is looted with large amounts of raw wool and goods such as blankets, socks, and sweaters carried away.This looting takes place in the presence of a local magistrate.5 October 1947 A group of Ahmadis who are taking shelter in the boarding house of Talimul-Islam High School are forced into labour by the Indian military.They are made to collect the possessions left behind by refugees and carry them to various locations.This continues for several days.The Talimul-Islam High School building is seized along with all furniture and equipment.Ahmadis are driven out of Noor Hospital, a medical facility owned and run by the community.In a display of extreme cal- lousness even the sick and wounded are expelled.A Hindu doctor is put in charge of the hospital, and later the management of the facility is given to a Sikh.6 October 1947 A second convoy of refugees assembled in Qadian sets out on foot for Pakistan.It numbers somewhere between eight to ten thousand Muslims.There are reports that they are attacked on their journey.

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19 10 October 1947 Masjid Aqsa comes under attack for a second time.On this occa- sion, four explosives are thrown into the mosque, two of which go off and damage the courtyard.One of the explosives which, thankfully fails to discharge, lands close to the final resting place of the father of the founder of the movement.12 October 1947 A Buick vehicle belonging to Mirza Rashid Ahmad is impounded.Earlier, another private vehicle belonging to Malik Umar Ali BA is also taken away.Similarly, two 3-tonne trucks belonging to the community are also confiscated.The authorities also take possession of a number of other vehicles under the pretext that the government is in need of them.14 October 1947 The head of the Ahmadiyya Community instructs Mirza Aziz Ahmad, who is the local amir of Qadian at this time to leave for Lahore.He is escorted by Colonel Dr Ata Ullah.Maulawi Jalal-ud- Din Shams, a former imam of the London Mosque is appointed as the local amir for Qadian in his place.15 October 1947 The authorities seal the printing press of the Ahmadiyya Commu- nity, which produces the community’s daily newsletter, the Alfazl , and the private library of the previous head of the community.The latter, which now serves as the central library of the community contains up to 30,000 volumes mostly of Arabic and Farsi books, many of which are rare and valuable.The principle purpose of this

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 20 library is to benefit and serve the learning and research of Ahmadi scholars.A number of other private libraries are also closed off.30 October 1947 There are reports of an attack on Qadian in which three mosques are desecrated.The minarets of the mosque in Mohalla Darul Rahmat are torn down, presumably to strip it of its Islamic identity.The Khojian mosque which belongs to the non-Ahmadi Muslims of Qadian has a notice put up outside of it declaring it to be an Arya Samaj mandir.Masjid Noor in Mohalla Darul Aloom, which also serves as the mosque for the college, becomes a meeting place for non- Muslim gatherings, and Sikhs take over the ablution area to wash their clothes.16 November 1947 The head of the Ahmadiyya Community instructs his eldest son, Mirza Nasir Ahmad and Maulawi Jalal-ud-Din Shams to go to Lahore.Maulawi Abdul Rahman is appointed as the amir of Qadian and Mirza Zafar Ahmad, barrister-at-law, is appointed the Nazir-e- Aala and chief secretary of Qadian.21 November 1947 Sikhs attack an Ahmadi home and pull down its walls.The proper- ty is incorporated into an adjacent gurdwara.Despite the protests and complaints of the community, the authorities refuse to take any action against the culprits.14 December 1947 Reports come through that the mosque in the Ahmadi village of

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21 Nangal Bagbana, close to the sacred cemetery of the community, has had its minarets pulled down and the congress flag flown on top of it as a mark of conquest.The mosque is now being used as a shelter for Sikh refugees.23 December 1947 A group of Ahmadis manage to get into Majid Noor in Mohalla Darul Aloom where they discover three maunds (111kg) of torn out pages from the Holy Qur’an, which they collect together and respectfully dispose of by burning.Such acts of desecration can only be motivated by hate and are carried out with the sole purpose of injuring the sentiment of Muslims.21 January 1948 There are reports that Sikhs in Qadian are deliberately selling pork packaged in pages of the Holy Qur’an looted from Muslim homes.Could anything be more provocative and malicious? 2 February 1948 Reports filter through that the Ahmadiyya mosque in Mohalla Darul Fazal has been taken over and is being used as a private residence by a non-Muslim refugee.A cooking area has been con- structed within the main mosque and the courtyard is covered in night soil.In this manner places of worship continue to be desecrated.After narrating this heartbreaking account, all that remains to be said is that the community has not been sitting idle.We have regularly reported these incidents to the ministers of East Punjab,

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 22 the Indian Union government, and all other relevant officials.However, except for a few formal acknowledgements to some of our later reports, we have not received any response to our letters or correspondence, let alone a simple acknowledgement of their receipt.Among the numerous communications and letters we have sent are the following: 1.A letter dated 12 September 1947, from Nazir Amoor- e-Ama Qadian to Deputy Commissioner Gurdaspur.2.A letter dated 18 September 1947, from the local amir of Qadian to Sardar Swaran Singh, the Home Minister of East Punjab, Jalandhar.3.A letter dated 4 October 1947, from Nazir Amoor-e- Ama to Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, the Home Minister of the Indian Union, New Delhi.4.A letter dated 7 October 1947, from Nazir Amoor-e- Ama to Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, the Prime Minister of the Indian Union, New Delhi.5.A statement issued in Lahore on 10 October 1947, by the head of the Ahmadiyya Community especially intended for Gandhi Ji and sent to him through his special representative Pandit Sundarlal who was on a visit to Lahore in those days.6.A telegram dated 2 November 1947, from Nazir Amoor- e-Kharja at Lahore to Dr Gopi Chand Bhargava the Premier of the East Punjab government, Jalandhar.7.A telegram dated 30 January 1948, from Nazir-e- Aala at Lahore to Pandit Jawarharlal Nehru, Prime Minister of the Indian Union, New Delhi.In all of these correspondence we have made it clear that al-

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23 though the Indian Union authorities publically claim that Muslims who wish to continue to live in India as peaceful and law-abiding residents are not only welcome to do so, but will be afforded the fullest protections from the government, these statements are at variance with the realities on the ground.Instead, even though the Ahmadiyya Community has repeatedly made it clear that loyalty to the government and the state is one of the fundamental tenets of our faith, and therefore, those Ahmadis who stayed in Qadian were duty-bound to act as loyal citizens, the Ahmadis there con- tinued to be brutalised, maltreated, and forced to leave their sa- cred centre.Unfortunately neither the East Punjab nor the Indian Union government have had anything to say in response to our remonstrations, and not even a single word of sympathy has been extended to us.We, therefore, now look only to God and He is the best of friends and the best of protectors.Lest anybody think that the account recorded in this diary is prejudiced, through sheer good fortune, we happen to have in our possession explicit testimonies to support our version of events from impartial witnesses and foreign visitors to Qadian.In the first instance, 14 non-Muslim individuals have recorded written testimonies that Qadian did indeed come under attack from Sikh militias and was victim of widespread murder, loot and destruction.All of these testimonies have been preserved and can be ascertained by anyone who is genuinely curious to do so.Secondly, during these turbulent days there happened to be in Qadian an English convert to Islam, Lt Brian Orchard, who was a direct eyewitness to many of these events.He returned to England in October of last year and published various accounts of what he had seen.For some of these accounts please see the South Western Star , London, of 10 October 1947 and the Evening Post , Bristol, of 11 October.There also happened to be in the town during these days a respectable

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 24 Arab lawyer, Syed Munir al-Hasni, who was visiting Qadian from Syria.He too saw first-hand much of this violence play out.Then further, in October of 1947 two independent British journalists, Douglas Brown and Josselyn Hennessy, visited Qadian for the specific purpose of investigating and reporting on the situation in the town.Their reports were published in the Daily Telegraph on 13 and 17 October, as well as the Daily Graphic , London, of 13 October.Again, the well-renowned Anglo-Indian journal of Lahore, the Civil & Military Gazette , reported on the crimes and atrocities committed in Qadian and confirmed news of the excesses committed in the town through independent witnesses.See the Civil & Military Gazette , Lahore, of 23 October 1947.These reports have also been corroborated by the office of the Colonial Secretary, Singapore, which citing the British Secretary of State for the Colonies affirms that a British representative, a certain Mr Stephenson, visited Qadian on 11 October and verified reports that the town was under continued and heavy attack which had resulted in murder, looting and destruction.This can be confirmed by a letter dated 10 January 1948 sent by the office of the Colonial Secretary in Singapore, to the Ahmadiyya missionary in charge of Singapore.People often ask whether the members of the community resist- ed the Sikh militias, which attacked Qadian and its surrounds.On this the head of the community was clear: if the militias attacked alone, they were to be resisted and repelled, however, if they were supported by the police or the military Ahmadis were not to resist them, and instead leave the matter up to God.In accordance with these instructions the Ahmadi residents of Qadian unflinchingly resisted the attacks of the militias and in the majority of instances got the better of them.However, when this violence was assisted and supported by the authorities (as was common in the latter days

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25 of the disturbances) our people held back even at a great personal cost.Yet despite these setbacks they could content themselves with the spiritual satisfaction of having complied with the instructions of the head of the community.I would like to add here, that despite all these horrors, there are still 313 faithful Ahmadi residents in Qadian.By the grace of God, despite all the cruelties they have witnessed they have remained resolute and firm.Yet even still their current circumstances are marked by misery and foreboding.They are presently enduring a Hindu and Sikh-led boycott and struggle to procure even basic necessities.Many of them are regularly harassed and there are frequent demonstrations against the community.In many ways they are being forced to live their lives in what is little more than an open air prison.But, despite all these deprivations, they have put their trust in God and hold out hope that all will be well in the end.Apart from these 313 individuals there are no Muslims left [in this part] of East Punjab.They are like a small island adrift against a raucous sea, threatened by torrents and waves.But, who can destroy a thing which God wants to protect? On a religious and spiritual level, I must mention here that the migration of the head of the Ahmadiyya Community and the exodus of Ahmadis from Qadian has taken place in accordance with the prophecies of the holy founder of the community, The Promised Messiah as.One of these revelations said: ِ یَْ تِْ عَلَیْکَ زَمٌَ کَمِثْل 5 ٰ زَمَِ مُوْس a time will come upon you like the time of Musa.Another revelation said: 6 داغ ِ رجہت.That is to say, the stigma of migration.From these revelations it is clear that the community was to leave Qadian at a certain point in its history.But just as there are 5 Tadhkirah , p.665, 2009 Ed.[Publishers] 6 Tadhkirah , p.340, 2009 Ed.[Publishers]

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 26 prophecies which foretold this migration, there are many others which foretell that one day, inshaAllah , we will return to our spiritual home.These prophecies will be fulfilled as certainly as those prophecies have been fulfilled before them.One of the revelations of the Promised Messiah as said: َ اِنَّ الَّذِیْ فَرَض 7 ٍ عَلَیْک َ الْقُرْاٰن َ لَرَآدُّک َ اِل ٰ مَعَاد the All-Powerful God Who made the Qur’an obligatory on you will bring you back.The world is a witness to the manner of our departure from our homes and our spiritual headquarters.But one day the world will also bear witness to us returning to this sacred town.Our return to Qadian has been decreed and nothing can stop it from happening.It has been decreed by the One Who is the creator of the heavens and the earth.In the end all praise belongs to Allah, Lord of all the Worlds.7 Tadhkirah , p.395, 2009 Ed.[Publishers]

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Reproduced in the following pages are two written eyewitness testimonies of key events recorded in.The first relates to the diary entry of 7 September 1947, and is the testimony of Abdul Karim, one of three men who were arrested by the authorities during the delivery of a memo to the deputy commissioner of Gurdaspur.The statement is hand-written and is stapled at the end of the original manuscript of from where it has been translated.The second testimony was recorded by Aziz Ahmad Bajwa and was included in the booklet Qadian—A Test Case which comprised part of and was sent to various officials and government departments to apprise them of the situation in the town during the disturbances which broke out after the announcement of the partition of India and Pakistan.The testimony relates to the ransacking and seizing of the home of Sir Chaudhry Zafarullah Khan and has been preserved and reproduced faithfully as it was recorded in Qadian—A Test Case, without any form of amendments or editing of spelling or grammatical errors and so on.

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2 EYEWITNESS TESTIMONIES The events I am about to narrate took place from 7 September 1947.Under the instructions of Nazir Amoor-e-Ama, Muhammad Yahya Sarsavi, Ahmad Ali who is the owner of a cycle shop in Qadian, and myself, set off for Gurdaspur to deliver an important letter to the deputy commissioner of the district.We left imme- diately.When we arrived at the dirt track adjacent to the irrigation canal of Tatley village, we turned towards Gurdaspur by way of the path that leads through Panj Garaian.The canal was dry and its bed was strewn with bodies and skeletons.When we arrived in Panj Garaian we took the road to Batala.It was broken across many places and in others it had been submerged in rainwater.This stretch of the journey was tough and we would jump about on the rocky surface of the road.During one particularly rough patch, Yahya Sarvari was hurled off the bike.But still, we continued on our way with as much haste as we could muster.Sometime afterwards, we approached an armed rabble.From a distance it was difficult to make out who they were.As I had been appointed the head of the group, I decided we should con- tinue on our way.Fortunately, we were able to make it past the mob without incident, and after crossing the Baring School we arrived at the district subdivision from where we were able to get onto the Gurdaspur Road.

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 30 Troops of Gurkhas patrolled the subdivision and had set up check points along the road.We crossed these at speed so the guards would have no chance to stop us.When we reached our destination, everything was empty and deserted.Once there, Ahmad Ali made some inquiries about the deputy commissioner, and we learned that he had been stationed elsewhere and his post had been taken over by a Hindu.We dropped the letter where it needed to be delivered and were given a written confirmation of its delivery.After that we went to the bungalow of the Pakistani consul of the district to receive a bag of medicines for Wali Ullah Shah Sahib.With our mission complete, we were ready to return to Qadian.Before departing we asked one of the locals whether to take the road to Tibri or to go via Batala.He suggested the latter, as the route from Tibri was considered dangerous.Yet as our fate would have it, when we were all set to leave, our motorcycle would not start.Someone told us to take the bike to the local train station where a group of Bengalis had decamped.We were told that they would have the necessary tools we needed to fix the motorcycle.However, when we approached them, they shunned our advances and would not even engage us in conversation.Feeling despondent, we tried to kick-start the motorcycle again, and after several attempts we somehow managed to get it working.With that, we were finally able to set off for Qadian.Unfortu- nately, we had only made it as far as Dhariwal that the motorcycle began to splutter and act up again, and when we got close to Naushera, it completely broke down.Stranded and alone, we sat ourselves down by the side of the road and prayed for a miracle.Everything around us was deserted except for the trucks loaded with Hindu and Sikh refugees that, every so often, would pass by our way.

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Eyewitness Testimonies 31 Sometime in the afternoon, a car passed in front of us before turning back and stopping some 50 yards away from where we were seated.Four soldiers and a Sikh officer emerged from the vehicle.With their guns loaded they made a circle around us and ordered us to raise our hands.We were separated and searched, but no weapons or ammunition were found on our person.On the far edge of the road there was a dwelling belonging to some Sikhs.They kept a watch over what was happening.We could see that they were armed with scythes and other weapons.However, at no point did they move to attack us.During the search, the soldiers accused us of being agitators.They alleged that we had set off a fire in a nearby village and killed a man on the side of the road.We denied these charges.They then asked us about the motorcycle and we told them it had broken down, and were it not for this, we would have already returned to Qadian.They took a look at the bike and after a great deal of tinkering around were able to get it running again.One of the soldiers joined Ahmad Ali on the motorcycle, and the rest of us took the car to the district lock up of Batala, where we were put in a holding cell.At around midnight we heard a commotion and saw the soldiers who were detaining us load their guns and run off into the distance.They said that Muslims were attacking the prison.Later we found out that these supposed ambushers were just a ramshackle group of Muslim refugees who were passing by close to where we were.This did not stop the soldiers from greeting them with a hail of bullets.When morning came we were handcuffed and loaded onto an army truck along with two Muslims from Batala and taken to Gurdaspur jail.When we reached there, we were surprised to see Chaudhry Sharif Ahmad Bajwa.He asked us whether we had

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 32 arrived at our destination and we nodded in assent.It seemed as though news of our arrest had gotten around.Soon after our arrival, we were presented before the chief jailor.His name was Seva Singh and he was from Pindi.His family had suffered greatly during the recent disturbances, and he took a disliking towards us from the outset.We stood before him straight and upright.Our lack of timidity angered him and he asked us if we knew who he was.We said yes.At this he ordered us to be thrown into solitary confinement.Even though the cell we were placed in was just about large enough for one person, a total of six of us were crammed inside of it, including a man accused of lewd and vulgar crimes.The cell was so small that when we tried to lie down we had to raise our legs up against the walls.We were subjected to a body search but, thankfully, after that we did not suffer any kind of torture.The food we received was abysmal and was little more than uncooked wheat.Owing to this ghastly diet, I came down with a series of stomach cramps, which were so painful, that I collapsed to the floor.My cell mates tried to soothe me as best as they could and shouted out for a doctor.But instead of calling for a medic, our captors shouted back that if anything happened to me they would just throw my body in the gutter.Upon hearing their reply, I felt a sudden upturn in my condition, and soon after I got up off the floor and dusted myself off.It was common practice at the prison, that when prisoners had served their sentence, they were murdered upon their release.The Muslim prisoners eventually informed the relevant officials about what was happening.The chief jailor was warned against this and told that all released prisoners should either be taken to the border, or sent away on a refugee convoy.After this the murders stopped.But even still, whenever a prisoner was released they would often

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Eyewitness Testimonies 33 refuse to leave and continue to hang around in the prison.This meant that the other prisoners had to share their daily rations with them.When the number of extra prisoners reached between 25-30, a vehicle was arranged to take them away.The orders for our own release had also arrived by then.We were taken to Batala.When we arrived there we saw a convoy of refugees, which seemed as though it had come under attack.We were given over to the custody of a Sikh captain who after issuing us with various threats told us to join the convoy.All around us were Sikh militias armed with kirpans, swords, and other weapons.They kept on asking the captain to step aside with his men so that they could slaughter the refugees.But the captain kept them at bay and ordered us to quickly join the convoy.We were grateful to him for this and considered ourselves blessed.With the caravan we made our way to Lahore via Jassar Bridge.We still had a letter which Shah Sahib had given us for Huzoor.However, we were reluctant to appear before Huzoor in our shabby and run down state.But Huzoor graciously received us and we were able to give him the letter.Eye-witness story of how Sir Mohammad Zafrullah Khan’s house at Qadian was looted and taken possession of by the Military.I, Aziz Ahmad Bajwa son of Ch.Mohammad Abdullah Khan Sahib (deceased) solemnly affirm and declare as follows:— 1.That I am a son of the maternal uncle of Ch.Sir Mohammad Zafrullah Khan Sahib, K.C.S.I., Ex- Judge of the Federal Court of India and am incharge of the whole property of Chaudhry Sahib aforesaid in the Gurdaspur District along with his house ‘Bait-

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 34 ul-Zafar’ situated in Mohalla Darul-Anwar, Qadian.2.That I was living in Bait-ul-Zafar and the cattle be- longing to the Chaudhry Sahib were also in the house.3.That on 25th September 1947 the Police looted the cattle of the Muslims in almost all the Mohallas of Qadian and about sunset ten Military soldiers with a Havildar came to Bait-ul-Zafar and sending for me asked me to give them the top-most roof and verandah of the first storey as they had to post a picket there under orders of their Captain.They accordingly took possession of these places and asked us to supply them with ten cots which we provided for them.At this time I myself, five servants of the house and many Muslim refugees with their women and children who had come from the neighbouring villages were living in Bait-ul-Zafar, we having vacated the ground floor rooms for the refugees by locking the household effects and property of Chaudhry Sahib in the upper storey rooms.4.That these soldiers kept annoying the women refugees the whole of that night which fact was disclosed to me by the refugees the next morning; and the next night gathering the women and children in the two central rooms, the doors round about were bolted from the inside for the sake of protection and men were put on guard in the verandah who were continually threatened by the soldiers that if they kept awake they would be shot.5.That on the night of the 26th September 1947 I was told by two soldiers at about 11 P M.that the

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Eyewitness Testimonies 35 Havildar had sent for me.On my going to him the Havildar asked me why the doors had been bolted on the inside.I replied that as his people have been annoying the women, they have bolted the doors for their protection.At this the Havildar told me to go inside.When the servants tried to come with me the armed soldiers prevented them.The Havildar and three soldiers took me inside and asked me to open the doors or else it shall not be safe.At this I had all the doors except those of the two rooms containing women and children opened and myself went to my own room.6.That between 12 midnight and 1-0 A.M.I was again told by two soldiers that the Havildar had sent for me.On my going to him he asked why the doors of the two rooms were bolted from inside.I said that they had been bolted for the protection of the women folk and that we were not prepared to open them.I then went to my room and after this these soldiers looted the cash and valuables of the refugees throughout the night.7.That on the morning of the 27th September, 1947, these soldiers forcibly turned out all the refugees from there who went elsewhere and the soldiers told us that if we went in any portion of the house except the servants’ quarters we shall be shot.8.That during the night of the 27th September, 1947, these soldiers broke open the upper storey rooms where the effects and property of the Chaudhry Sahib had been locked and kept removing it on a military

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 36 truck the whole night through.When anyone of us went that side he was threatened to go back or he would be shot.9.That these soldiers kept on removing the moveables on the truck as before during the nights of the 28th and 29th of September 1947.On the night of the 30th September these very soldiers came to the serv- ants’ quarters accompanied by three Sikhs armed with naked swords and lifted two she-buffaloes and one mare threatening us with death if we moved.10.That between seven and eight in the morning on the 1st October, 1947, I was again sent for by the Havildar who told me that we must vacate the house by midday as their soldiers were arriving who would henceforth live in the house.Accordingly saying that if we did not leave we shall be shot we were forcibly removed from the house.11.That on the 2nd October 1947 I again went to Bait- ul-Zafar at about noon, but an officer whose rank I do not know asked me who I was.I told him that I was in charge of the house, but he shouted at me to get out as I had no right there, saying that I should not come there again.12.That we have been forcibly removed from Bait-ul- Zafar by the Military and have been threatened with death and these soldiers have also looted the property in Bait-ul-Zafar.(Sd.) AZIZ AHMAD, Deponent.Dated 7th October 1947.

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Eyewitness Testimonies 37 Aziz Ahmad deponent made the above statement on solemn affirmation which I took down in my own hand and which was signed by Aziz Ahmad deponent in my presence after reading it and admitted it to be correct.(Sd.) ASADULLAH KHAN, Barrister-at-Law, Real brother of Sir Mohammad Zafrullah Khan K.C.S.I.Dated 7th October 1947.

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Reproduced here are numerous letters, correspondence, and articles mentioned at the end of.These were appended to the booklet Qadian—A Test Case and have been included here in their original form along with any explanatory notes and captions without amendment or correction for any spelling mistakes, grammatical errors, inconsistencies, and so on.These documents provide detailed insight into the violence and upheaval faced by the residents of Qadian and refugees from the surrounding area, as well as the many difficulties encountered by the administration of the community during this period.

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3 LETTERS, CORRESPONDENCE, AND ARTICLES Statement by the Nazir Umoor Amma and Kharjah, Qadian, addressed in the form of a letter to the Deputy Commissioner, Gurdaspur, refuting baseless propaganda against the Ahmadiyya Community, Qadian, (Dated Qadian the 12th September 1947).The Ahmadiyya Community which has its Headquarters at Qadian, District Gurdaspur, is a world-wide Religious Community having branches not only in all parts of India but also in many foreign lands such as England, France, Italy, Egypt, Syria, Iraq, Burma, Malaya, Indonesia, Kenya, Nigeria, Gold Coast, Sierra Leon, USA and the Republic of Argentine.The Community which is a comparatively recent one, has always been peaceful and law-abiding and has never failed to co-operate to the utmost of its power with any Government under which its members have happened to live.In the present political situation too the Community has declared its policy of full co-operation with both India and Pakistan as branches of the Community are to be found in both the new born Dominions.Unfortunately, however, attempts have recently been made to bring the good name of the Community into disrepute by attributing to it acts which it never committed and could never think of committing.Some of these allegations’ are briefly dealt with below:— 1.It has been reported to the authorities and also widely

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 42 circulated in public that in connection with the present disturbances in the Gurdaspur district the Ahmadiyya Community of Qadian has been sending out its Jeep cars to the neighbouring Muslim villages in order to incite them against the Sikhs and organise Muslim Jathas to attack Sikh villages.This allegation which, to say the least, is baseless and unfounded, seems to have arisen from the fact that when Ahmadi villages (which are found in quite a large number roundabout Qadian) were threatened by Sikh Jathas the Headquarters of the Ahmadiyya Community which was naturally anxious about the safety of its members had to send out their motors in order to know the fate of their co-religionists in these villages with a view to submitting reports, if necessary, to the authorities for necessary action.Thus an innocent act, justified and permitted by law, was misconstrued or misrepresented as an act of aggression.As soon, however, as the authorities banned the use of Jeep cars outside Qadian even these lawful activities were stopped and the collection of anxiously await- ed information was thereafter confined to pedestri- ans risking their lives across dangerously disturbed countryside.In this connection it may also be stated that one of our cars (owned by an Ahmadi) moving on a similar duty and returning from the threatened village of Faizullah Chak was wrongfully captured by the Police and has not so far been returned.2.When the running of trains coming to and going from Qadian was stopped and our telegraphic as well as telephonic communication with the outside world was practically cut off we had to make increasing

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Letters, Correspondence, and Articles 43 use of privately owned aeroplanes in order to keep ourselves in touch with the outside world and arrange our mails to be carried to, and brought from Lahore.Occasionally the planes also flew to Gurdaspur to contact District authorities (once it was actually sent for by Malik Haq Nawaz Khan, S.P., Gurdaspur, as the Police wished to fly over the disturbed area to have a bird’s eye view of the country-side) or to find out the fate of Ahmadi villages that were reported to be attacked by Sikh Jathas.One of these Ahmadi villages was Winjwan (Police Station, Batala) which was attacked, looted and destroyed on August 20/21 and no less than 50 of its inhabitants were killed and about 39 wounded.Another Ahmadi village was Faizullah Chak (Police Station Dhariwal) which was attacked and destroyed on August 22/23 and very heavy casualties were inflicted on its people including the abduction of a large number of women.In spite of this even the innocent use of our aeroplanes was banned and we were deprived of the last cord that connected us with the outside world.The reason for this banning order was alleged to be that one of these aeroplanes shot at certain Sikhs from the air or, as another version of this allegation goes, it landed in the fields and shot at some of the Sikhs gathered there.Now, any experienced officer of the India Air Force can easily see that both these things are physically impossible, for, considering the speed of the aircraft, no sane man can think of effectively using his gun from the air or of landing in a crowd of hostile Sikhs and then taking off at will.Besides, we

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 44 solemnly affirm that both allegations are baseless and somebody has concocted this story to poison the ears of the authorities against us and therby deprive us of the only means of contact with the outside world.It is a pity, however, that in spite of our repeated denials the story is still being believed to be true.If the authorities be inclined to reconsider their decision we are prepared to abide by any reasonable restrictions that they may consider necessary to impose with regard to the use of our aeroplanes and we are even willing to bind ourselves not to use the aeroplanes except when a soldier detailed by the Military posted at Qadian accompanies the plane.3.Another allegation made against the Ahmadiyya Community of Qadian is that during the recent disturbances one of the neighbouring village signalled (the recent version states that it “wirelessed” and so the story continues to grow and swell) to the minaret at Qadian that “more ammunition was required”.This allegation was first disclosed by Brigadier Thimaya who visited Qadian towards the end of the last month and we tried to convince him that no such signalling was ever done.The fact is only this much that one of the threatened Ahmadi villages which could not send a messenger owing to the great danger on the way once signalled by means of a torch stating that the village was in imminent danger and that any help (in the form of Military etc.) that could be arranged should be immediately sent to save Ahmadi lives; and we actually persuaded the local Military to send out a patrol to the village which was thus saved by this

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Letters, Correspondence, and Articles 45 timely action.But as even this innocent signalling has been made the basis of a serious allegation we have since discontinued that too.4.The fourth allegation against the Ahmadiyya Com- munity of Qadian is that some Ahmadies go about wearing Military uniforms and thus the people of the countryside are made to believe that they are Military men.If that impression has really been created we are sincerely sorry but the fact is only this much that some retired ex-soldiers wore these uniforms because they are dust proof and do not require frequent changing and also because in normal times no objection is tak- en against them but since we were informed that they are banned we have strictly prohibited their use.Having briefly stated the above facts it may be respectfully submitted that the actual results that accrue from acts supposed to have been committed by a person or persons are certainly a much surer and in fact the only real guide to determine the true nature of such alleged acts or the intentions of the doer or doers of those acts.From the terrible things that have happened in the past three weeks in the Gurdaspur district generally and in the countryside round about Qadian particularly it is quite clear that for miles around Qadian, village after village inhabited by Muslims has either been burnt or looted and its people have been either killed or made to flee for their lives.If the intention of some of our people had really been what has been attributed to them and if they had actually indulged in acts of aggression that have been ascribed to them the result would have certainly been different.In fact the tale of woe and misery of the Muslim population round about Qadian leads only to the one conclusion that our men never intended to commit or actually committed the acts of aggression

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 46 ascribed to them.Towards the end it may again be submitted that it is one of the cardinal beliefs of the Ahmadiyya Community to remain loyal to the Government under which its members happen to live and for this belief or others of its peaceful ideals it has, for years, suffered persecution from all quarters, and even from a section of their Muslim co-religionists, and in pursuance of these ideals we willingly offer our full co-operation to the Government under which we have now been destined to live and we request that in return we may at least be assured the protection of our lives and honour and the free exercise of our religious practices and civil rights.P.S.—Incidentally it may be mentioned that some misun- derstanding seems to exist about the four weapons (two shot guns and two revolvers) belonging to three respectable men of our Community and taken hold of by the Gurdaspur Police.All these weapons it must be stated were licensed ones and the licence holders possessed duly granted permits for carrying them.Moreover the licence holders are highly respectable men—one being a Secretary of the Central Ahmadiyya Organisation and the other two being retired Government Officers (a D.S.P.and an S.D.O.) who had gone to Gurdaspur to see the Deputy Commissioner and the Officer Commanding incharge of the Military at Gurdaspur.They carried these weapons for self-protection which is a real necessity in these highly disturbed days.( This letter has so far remained unanswered )

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Letters, Correspondence, and Articles 47 Copy of personal letter sent by Mirza Bashir Ahmad, M.A., local Amir of Ahmadiyya Community, Qadian to the Hon’ble Sardar Swarn Singh, Home Member, East Punjab Government, Jullundur.Qadian 18th September 1947 Dear Sardar Sahib, I was very glad to learn five days ago that you phoned to me at mid-night but that you could not get my connection, and that consequently you gave a message for me to the clerk on duty that you had ordered the removal of the hitch about our trunk calls.It was indeed very kind of you but unfortunately owing to some unknown reason we have not so far been able to get a trunk call or even to contact you on the telephone for which I tried my best for so many hours.Our present main difficulties may be summed up as follows:— 1.We are almost completely cut off from the rest of the world and even from our district and tehsil headquarters, there being practically no telephonic or telegraphic connection, no trains and no mails.Road traffic is also practically blocked because our Jeep cars have been banned and other cars have no petrol, not to speak of the danger on the way which makes it practically impossible to move about without an escort.If telegraphic or telephonic connection be restored and at least one daily train service be resumed that would be a very material relief for which all concerned will be extremely thankful to you.2.There are about fifty thousand refugees gathered at Qadian from the neighbouring Muslim villages.This huge number is creating a very serious problem for us, not only in the matter of food but also as a possible

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 48 source of other complications.These may kindly be removed from Qadian as soon as possible.The local Military has promised to arrange a foot convoy but till this arrangement materialises we can possibly have no rest.3.Qadian itself may have to be evacuated and we are already arranging the evacuation of women and children through private convoys but the present rate is naturally very slow and unless large convoys are arranged or a daily train service is established the process of avacuation will naturally be long delayed.A foot convoy with Muslim Military escort may also very materially help in evacuating a fairly large number, after which only a limited number of people will remain to look after the Mosques and other holy shrines and to conduct essential religious services.4.Since all Muslim villages round-about Qadian have been evacuated Sikhs from the neighbouring villages are frequenting Qadian, roaming about in large num- bers in the streets and even in exclusively Ahmadi Mohallas.As this state of affairs is causing great anx- iety in the minds of the Ahmadies and may possibly lead to trouble it is requested that the Police and Mil- itary posted at Qadian may kindly be instructed to prevent such aimless entry of outside Sikhs into Qa- dian.Already there have taken place several incidents in which outside Sikhs have snatched away Muslim property—milch cattle, horses, bicycles etc.,—from the streets of Qadian.One local Ahmadi has also been killed with kirpans.5.Two of our distinguished members who are also

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Letters, Correspondence, and Articles 49 members of the Central Ahmadiyya Association— Ch.Fateh Mohammad Sial, M.A., M.L.A., and Syed Zain-ul-Abidin Wali Ullah Shah, Nazir, Umoor Amma—have been arrested under Section 302 I.P.C.by the Srigobindpur Police.I do not in any way mean to interfere with the course of justice but as a gentleman speaking to a gentleman I should convince you that these two gentlemen are innocent of the charge laid against them.If you can do anything to help these really innocent men it will certainly be an act of virtue, otherwise, we shall have to be resigned to the fate that may await them.It is rumoured that more arrests are contemplated and that vexatious searches are going to be made.We leave the matter to you and to your good conscience.Personally I have so far no complaint to make (and indeed do not desire to make) against the present Sikh A.S.I.of Qadian.He has been here for the last several years and knows all local communities and all communities know him and we should not desire his transfer (for we do not know what sort of officer will replace him) but the Station House Officers of the neighbouring Police Stations may sometimes resort to an undesirable course of action and we stand in need of your sym- pathy in checking this.This may be all hearsay to you but I have no earthly means of convincing you of the present state of affairs in and round about Qadian except requesting you to kindly come here personally and see things for yourself.I certainly sympathise with those Sikhs and Hindus who have suffered in West Punjab but that cannot alleviate our sufferings in the East.May God protect and help us all, and

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 50 ordain the restoration of peace and harmony in this land of ours so that Hindus, Sikhs and Muslims may again live as peaceful citizens of their common motherland.So far as our own attitude towards other communities is concerned anybody who contacts the local Hindu and Sikh population of Qadian will readily see that our own treatment of them has been not only neighbourly but also brotherly.This is why no incident has so far occurred in Qadian proper except that as already stated two days ago an innocent Ahmadi was killed by kirpans in Qadian by some Sikhs of the neighbouring villages.I may mention that I am the younger brother of Hazrat Mirza Bashir-ud-Din Mahmud Ahmad present Head of the Ahmadiyya Community who is at present in Lahore.P.S.—(Dated Lahore the 1st of October 1947).Since the above was written much has happened.Searches have been carried out in the private houses of several members of our family including that of the Head of the Ahmadiyya Community who is at present in Lahore and though nothing incriminating was found.Several licensed weapons were taken away.During the last rainy spell many thousand heads of cattle worth lacs of rupees were forcibly snatched away by the neighbouring Sikhs under the very eyes and probably at the instigation of the local Police and several refugees have been shot dead and their women reported to have been raped.May God help us all.It is rumoured that food grains of even zamindars and those holding permits will be confiscated.M.B.A.(This letter, the latter part of which was written on 1st October 1947 still remains unanswered).

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Letters, Correspondence, and Articles 51 Air Mail Letter sent by the Nazir, Umoor-o-Amma, Central Ahmadiyya Organisation Lahore, to the Hon’ble Sardar Vallabhai Patel, Home Member, Government of India, New Delhi.(Dated Lahore, the 4th of October 1947).Your recent speech at Amritsar was certainly reassuring and should help to restore confidence.Encouraged by this speech I have the honour to bring to your kind notice the following points about Qadian (District Gurdaspur) Headquarters of the world-wide Ahmadiyya Movement:— 1.In spite of any allegations that might have reached you to the contrary I wish to convince you that the Ahmadiyya Community is a peaceful and law-abid- ing body, one of whose fundamental principles of faith is to co-operate with any lawfully established Government that might be in power.In view of the above principle we have repeatedly declared and even now declare in this respectful representation that as Qadian has been placed in the East Punjab the best efforts of its Ahmadi population will be direct- ed to prove even more peaceful and more law-abid- ing citizens of the Dominion than the Hindus or the Sikhs.In spite of these declarations, however, I am painfully constrained to inform you that the local administration is pursuing a ruthless policy of driving the Ahmadies out of their homes and Headquarters.There have been many cases of loot, vexatious searches, arrests, murder and even rape at Qadian, and the local officers are openly reiterating their demand of getting Qadian vacated as soon as possible.We know that final justice lies in the hands

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 52 of God but as Member-in-charge of law and order in the country I wish to appeal to you in the name of justice and fairness to kindly visit Qadian personally and see things for yourself so that you may be able to appreciate the right situation and judge the truthful- ness of this submission of ours.We are prepared to bear all the expenses in this connection.But if that be not possible we would request you to kindly allow an Ahmadiyya deputation to wait on you in New Delhi and place their case before you.In that case I would request you to kindly arrange an escort to take the said deputation to New Delhi and back.2.Qadian, you know, is the Headquarters of the Ah- madiyya Movement having branches in almost all countries of the world as well as in different parts of the Dominion of India.Some of the foreign branches are located in— Tehran (Persia) Magburka (Sierra-Leone) Haifa (Palestine) Rome Damascus Zurich (Switzerland) Aden Paris Rosehill (Mauritius) Hague Cairo Madrid.Tabora (Tanganyka) London Nairobi (East Africa) Chicago Dar-us-Salam // Pittsburgh (U.S.A.) Kampala // Buenos Aires (Argentine) Kisumu // Jesselton (Borneo) Mombasa //

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Letters, Correspondence, and Articles 53 Saltpond (Gold Coast) Labwan (Borneo) Kumasi // Padang (Sumatra) Wa // Singapore Lagos (Nigeria) Batavia (Java) Zaria // Tasik Malaya // Bo (Sierra-Leone) Bandoeng // Free Town // These branches carry on missionary and cultural ac- tivities of the Ahmadiyya Movement in their respec- tive zones.From the above list you can readily see that justice and fairness shown to Qadian will be appreciated throughout the length and breadth of the world; if however the reverse be the case the widely spread Ahmadiyya branches all the world over will naturally find it difficult to praise the Indian Government even if they should so desire.3.Ours is a purely religious Movement engaged in spiritual, cultural, missionary and educational activ- ities and fundamentally we have nothing to do with politics except in so far as is necessary for a citizen to come in contact with.So, if our Headquarter re- mains basically intact, as believing in Divine prom- ises we hope it will, the Government of the country can possibly have no fear and will be running no risk in granting us the protection that is our right.On the contrary such a spiritual and cultural centre devoted to a policy of peaceful co-operation will definitely be an asset to the Government under which it happens to be.

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 54 Towards the end I must again request you to kindly give your personal and immediate attention to this matter and thereby lay under obligation an important and world-wide community.(This letter has so far remained unanswered).Editorial note Published in Pakistan Times, Lahore in its issue of 4th October 1947.QADIAN Many people still believe that much of the misery brought about by the present mass exodus of populations could have been avoided if people had stuck to their homes and braved all dangers.The Governments of India and East Punjab have repeatedly expressed their abhorrence of forcible eviction and have repeatedly pledged themselves to protect all those members of the minorities who wanted to stay.The people of Qadian decided to provide a test case and stayed.And the Government of East Punjab appear to be emerging out of this test as abjectly as can be imagined.If Qadian has to some extent been spared the savageries that have been perpetrated elsewhere, it is due to its well-knit community organisation.With all its record of unqualified loyalty and ungrudging service to the Government established by law, the Ahmadiyya community is now threatened from a quarter from which it was least prepared to expect trouble.Besides its own population, Qadian has given shelter to 50,000 Muslims from the surrounding villages who have been fed and accommodated now for a month.This has resulted in the depletion of food stocks at Qadian and, to make matters worse, the authorities have demanded that people possessing more than a very limited quantity of food-grains should surrender their reserves on pain

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Letters, Correspondence, and Articles 55 of serious action.A general search for arms has been instituted and even licensed weapons have been seized from people who are the least likely to misuse them.People of probity have been locked up under penal sections.Some of the refugees who had taken shelter in a building on the outskirts of the town were shot at for resisting, we are told, an assault on their women by the very minions of law and order.Marauders, with little respect for human life and women’s honour, have been freely robbing the refugees of their money and other belongings.We endorse the appeal of the Qadian community that immediate arrangements should be made for the evacuation of women and children from Qadian.The men have decided to remain there.The Government of East Punjab will be serving its own best interests by stopping its functionaries from harassing and intimidating a traditionally loyalist and constitutionally-minded section of the people who can be a valuable asset to that Government at a time when its own political supporters are flagrantly defying its authority.It has not condescended to answer a single charge out of the many charges brought against it by the people of Qadian.We hope that it will not only do so, but also endeavour to eliminate the grievances that have brought these charges about.Letter from Nazir, Amoor-i-Amma, Ahmadiyya Headquarters, Lahore to the Hon’ble Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru, Premier, Government of India, New Delhi.(Dated Lahore the 7th of October 1947) I have the honour to bring to your notice the following brief points about Qadian (District Gurdaspur), Headquarters of the Ahmadiyya Community:—

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 56 The Ahmadiyya Community which is a world-wide organi- zation having branches not only in all parts of India but also in almost all foreign countries is a peaceful and law-abiding body, one of whose fundamental principles of faith is to co-operate with any lawfully established Government that might be in power.In view of this principle, we have repeatedly declared that as Qadian has been placed in East Punjab, the best efforts of our members there will be directed to prove as peaceful and as law-abiding citizens a of the Dominion of India as the Hindus or the Sikhs.On the other hand, the top-most leaders of India including Mahatma Gandhi and yourself have also repeatedly declared that such Muslims of the East Punjab as desire to stick to their homes and wish to live as peaceful and loyal citizens of India, will not be molested or in any way forced to leave their homes.In spite of these reciprocal decla- rations which, I believe, were without any mental reservation on either side, the local administration at Qadian or for that matter at Gurdaspur is, I am constrained to remark, not only pursuing a ruthless policy of harassment but also that of driving the Ahmadies out of their homes and Headquarters.Vexatious searches are being made, licensed weapons are being seized, responsible members of the Community are being arrested on purely made-up charg- es, innocent persons are being shot, houses are being looted (the house of the Head of the Ahmadiyya Community and that of Sir Mohammad Zafrullah Khan are among those that have been loot- ed), women are being forcibly carried away, scavengers are being prevented from cleaning the houses and flour mills are practically closed so that there is no atta left and people are forced to eat boiled wheat the stock of which is rapidly running short.A recent report is to the effect that even our private hospital at Qadian has been taken possession of by the Police and the Military.This is certainly a most shocking state of affairs in spite of your

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Letters, Correspondence, and Articles 57 declarations and I invite you to kindly visit Qadian and see things for yourself.Our private information is to be effect that so far no less than 150 people have been shot dead at Qadian including two who were killed in our Central Mosque there.Two members of the Central Ahmadiyya Association have been arrested and many others similarly seized and jailed.Another report says that our men have been forcibly turned out of our T.I.Degree College at Qadian which has been taken possession of by the Military and reported to have been given to the Sikh National College authorities.To crown all, our convoys to Qadian for evacuating women and children have recently been banned on the pretext that Qadian road is under repairs resulting in about three thousand Ahmadi women being stranded in two or three small pockets in the town.I do not know, Sir, whether you can do anything in the matter in spite of your best intentions, but if you are able to do anything I appeal to you in the name of justice and fairness to come to the rescue of an innocent and highly wronged people (who wish to remain in their sacred places) before it is too late.N.B.—Copy forwarded to Mahatma Gandhi, New Delhi.( So far no answer ) The Situation at Qadian, being a Statement by the Head of the Ahmadiyya Community sent to Mr.Gandhi through Pandit Sunder Lal, his personal representative.(Dated Lahore, the 10th October 1947).1.The Ahmadiyya Community believes that we should be cruel to none.It has from the very beginning set it- self against the view which considers it right to perse- cute human beings holding religious beliefs different

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 58 from our own.In fact for upholding the principle of freedom of belief four Ahmadies were stoned to death in Kabul in the days of previous Amirs.2.The community has always advocated that if in any possible way through settlement between the Muslim League and the Congress the country could remain united it should do so and India should remain un- divided.The present Head of the Community has recommended this ideal and argued for this in his numerous writings and speeches.3.During the last Easter week-end, delegates from different Ahmadiyya centres met for their annual conference at Qadian, our headquarters.Communal rioting had started in the Punjab from early March.Opening the proceedings the Head of the Community said he would not be happy and therefore would not proceed with the agenda, unless he could be assured by the delegates that not only had they not taken any part in communal rioting, but had done something positive to save the lives of Hindus and Sikhs.Upon this, dozens of delegates stood up one by one and described how they were able to save the lives of non- Muslims.They also said that they could produce evidence for what they had done.4.During the more recent riots many Hindus and Sikhs had their lives saved by Ahmadies.We have a list of about 300 for which we possess positive evidence.The Head of the Community and some of other central workers are now at Lahore.During their stay in Lahore, they gave protection to Col.Chopra who until some time ago was living in the same building

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Letters, Correspondence, and Articles 59 with them.Col.Chopra was escorted to Sialkot in a military truck by a nephew of the Head of the Com- munity, Major Mirza Daud Ahmad.From Sialkot other arrangements were made to carry him safe- ly to Jammu.Similarly some other Hindu refugees in Lahore were given protection by members of the Community for a period of about one month.The fact came to the notice of some communally-minded people who got some of our men arrested on false charges and the Police officer who arrested our men openly said that he was really doing so because our men had given protection to Hindus.To be frank we must add here that as facts reach us Hindus and Sikhs are even now living in different parts of Lahore with some measure of safety while no Muslim is able to live in Amritsar.5.As we have said Ahmadiyya Community has always believed in loyalty to the State under which one lives, so much so that about 20 years ago the present Head of the Community said in answering a question that if Afghanistan and India went to war, the Ahmadies living in Afghanistan will fight for Afghanistan and Ahmadies living in India will fight for India.Only, they would try and persuade their respective Governments to avoid war and settle their dispute in a peaceful manner.6.Ahmadies of Qadian have said again and again that they wish to stay in Qadian and suffer rather than evacuate.Ahmadies, therefore, fulfil both the conditions proposed by the Indian Union for such of the Muslims as wish to stay in the

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 60 Union.They are loyal to the State and they wish to stay in Qadian, their religious centre.In spite of this however, Ahmadies of Qadian have been sub- jected to untold hardships during the last two months or so, as is apparent from the following instances:— ( i ) More than a dozen Ahmadi villages in the area around Qadian have been looted and burnt and many Ahmadies belonging to these villages have been killed.Local officials have failed to provide any protection to them.( ii ) False reports about Qadian have been sent by local officials to their superiors which the India authorities have accepted without inquiry, in spite of the fact that these reports have been challenged again and again by Ahmadies.For example:— ( a ) It has been said that Ahmadies had been using armoured Cars whereas the truth is that no armoured car has ever been used by Ahmadies.Only one Captain Abdullah recently released from the army bought a Command car.This Command car, as everybody knows, carries no arms ; still it was said that an armoured car had been used.The facts are that this Command car belonging to Capt.Abdullah was carrying some passengers and was attacked by the Police.The driver was wounded.The passengers who were going to fetch news of a threatened Ahmadi village jumped out and ran away.These men, it was alleged, were going to attack some place.Now, if they were out to attack, where were the arms they would have used and why did they not use them when they themselves were attacked ? This car has not been returned to the owner.( b ) It has been said that an Ahmadi aeroplane landed and attacked a Sikh Jatha, whereas the truth is that no aeroplane has yet been invented which can land where it pleases and take off when it pleases.The experts know this.How then did this plane land and how did it take off again ? Had it landed in a field, it

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Letters, Correspondence, and Articles 61 would have come to grief.Even if it had landed safely it would have been attacked by gunfire and destroyed by the Jatha, before it had had time to fly.( c ) It has been said that this plane carried and used a wireless transmitter to communicate with villages in the area.Wireless messages need trained operators and receivers and receivers need batteries.The villages alleged to have been communicated to, have been destroyed and are now in occupation by Sikhs.Where went the operators and where were any receivers or batteries found ? ( d ) It was said that Ahmadies attacked a nearby village called Mahara and killed four Sikhs and that curfew was on that account imposed on Qadian.The report was quite false.There is no village near Qadian called Mahara or Mahura.There is indeed a village called Khara.This is a Muslim village and was attacked by Sikhs.In the fight which ensued four Sikhs were reported to have been killed.So curfew was imposed on Qadian only because a Muslim village nearby had exercised its right of self-defence.Could not the Central Government have asked the local officials to point out the village Mahara and why is this Mahara or Mahura not mentioned in Government revenue records or any official map or list ? This would have exposed the local reporter at once.( e ) In an official communique it was also said that sixteen Ah- madies in military uniform and driving a weapon carrier attacked a Sikh village.The facts are that 16 Hindu soldiers stationed at Qadian were out on patrol.They were attacked by Sikhs and over- whelmed.More military from Qadian went to save them.Next day again the Military went to the attacking village to punish the villagers.The direction in which this Military went was the same as the one mentioned in the official communique.They were also same in number.The fact can be ascertained by a reference to the official daily report which the local Military are ordered to send

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 62 to the higher authorities or by reference to the Captain who was commanding the party.The communique said that these men in uniform were students of the Qadian college.The college had been closed for the summer vacation and is still closed.The fact is that when Sikhs saw that they had been caught, they made a false re- port on the instigation of the local Police in the thana.The Central Government did not care to examine the report of the Military and hastened to issue a false report.We say again that the Military diary will at once expose this report.( iii ) In Qadian and in the area around Muslims have been killed by the thousand.More than 100 villages have been looted and burnt.But not one arrest has been made.On the other hand about a dozen Qadian Ahmadies have been arrested.Upon whom should the administration have laid its hand ? Upon those who burnt and looted the villages and dispossessed the villagers ? Or those who were driven away from their homes and dispossessed of their lands ? It was certainly those responsible for criminal acts who should have been arrested.( iv ) After the area around had been cleared and the people of Qadian had become virtually besieged, responsible Ahmadies began to be arrested on false charges.Two Secretaries of the Community, both 60 years old, were arrested (and still remain arrested) on the charge that they went out with the Military and killed Sikhs.One of the two accused is an M.L.A.And who can believe that the Community will appoint its top-ranking leaders to kill rough and illiterate Sikh villagers ? If they accompanied the Military, why did not the Military shoot them and why did the Police take action after two weeks when that Military detachment had left.It is as well to point out that the Military in question had a Hindu officer, Captain Rawley, to be exact.One of the accused Syed Waliullah Shah never went out.The other Chaudhri Fateh

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Letters, Correspondence, and Articles 63 Mohammad Sial, M.A., M.L.A., went on the suggestion of the Military and along with the Military to help them to get in touch with neighbouring Sikh leaders with a view a to making peace efforts.If Chaudhri Fateh Mohammad fired in their presence, it must have been under their orders.The fact, however, is that he did not fire at all.The whole story is trumped up.Two highly educated missionaries of the Community have also been arrested on the charge that they committed murder and dacoity in a village nearby.Nobody who knows Qadian and the Ahmadies can believe this.Qadian has been under a siege for some time.Our missionaries or other Ahmadies never tried to attack, kill or loot people even when they were free and there was peace at Qadian, and the area around was safe for Ahmadies.How could they do such a thing when Qadian was besieged and the area around occupied by hostile Sikhs? The facts are that these two persons had then been appointed to work with the Police and the Military.When they saw the Police misbehaving, they reported to the Military.The Police arrested them to prevent an exposure.Major Sharif Ahmad Bajwa, B.A., was also arrested on the plea that an armoured car belonging to him had been seen going about.The car was not an armoured car, but only a Command car.It did not belong to Major Sharif Ahmad but to his cousin Capt.Abdullah.The fact can be verified by an examination of the record of the Car Registration Office, Lahore.It was also said that the case of a gun belonging to Major Sharif Ahmad had been found in the car.The fact was easily accounted for, and the Batala Magistrate who had ordered Sharif Ahmad’s arrest knew it.Only the day before Major Sharif Ahmad had gone to see this Magistrate in this very car.With the Deputy Commissioner’s permit he was also carrying his licensed arms with him.He forgot the cover in the car.This was nothing extraordinary.The car was his cousin’s and

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 64 he could easily be careless about taking everything out of it.Major Sharif Ahmad is still under arrest in spite of assurances given to the contrary by the Military.Many other Ahmadies have been arrested because they pre- vented the Police from looting or reported against them.As no road or rail transport exists, no legal or other assistance can be sent to them.Once the Deputy Commissioner, Gurdaspur asked the Deputy Commissioner, Sialkot why the defence of these accused was not being arranged.The Deputy Commissioner, Sialkot asked whether any safe transport was available, upon which the Deputy Commissioner, Gurdaspur said nothing.( v ) Again and again local officials have advised Ahmadies to vacate Qadian.Col.Gurbachan Singh said this to Major Mirza Daud Ahmad who happened to visit Qadian with a convoy.The Superintendent of Police, Gurdaspur said the same thing a few days ago to Mirza Aziz Ahmad, M.A., of Qadian who is the local Chief now-a-days.A mutual Hindu friend visiting Mirza Aziz Ahmad on behalf of the Deputy Commissioner, Gurdaspur, said the same thing.The Superintendent of Police even said that Ahmadies lived on the border and belonged to another faith.In case of war, they were bound to suffer.In fact, he said, they would in such a case be wiped off ! The hint was obvious enough.( vi ) About 700 girls have been abducted out of the Qadian area.The girls who were able to return were produced before Major- General Thimaya when he visited Qadian.But nothing has been done to bring to book the miscreants who have been responsible for such a heinous crime on such a large scale.We have a list of a great number of these abducted girls.( vii ) The police have been looting the houses and the camp.During one of Col.Gurbachan Singh’s tours of inspection a policeman and a military soldier were found looting the local Bata

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Letters, Correspondence, and Articles 65 shop.A Captain was a witness of this.The culprits were caught redhanded but were soon let off.( viii ) The number of refugees gathered at Qadian from the neighbouring villages mounted to more than 40,000.The Gov- ernment has not provided a single day’s ration or cooked food.The Ahmadiyya Community in these difficult days went on feeding this large number for many days.The Government saw this and ordered that no body could keep more than two bags of wheat in stock.What was this order meant for, if it was not for starving both outside refugees and Qadian Ahmadies? ( ix ) Curfew was imposed on Qadian without cause.Curfew restrictions were imposed even outside curfew hours.Vexatious and infructuous searches were made during curfew.The house of the Head of the Community and the house of his eldest son Mirza Nasir Ahmad and other members of the family were searched.The houses of many other respectable Ahmadies were also searched.Nothing incriminating was found during these searches, even though the floors of some of the houses were also dug up.( x ) Many licensed arms were taken away by the Police after these searches.These have still to be returned.A gun belonging to the Head of the Community, a rifle belonging to a nephew of his, a revolver from another nephew of his were taken away.A recent report is that the Police is now demanding from Ahmadies a list of all licensed arms at Qadian, which shows that they want to carry off all arms so that an attack on that small portion of Qadian which is still left may be rendered easy.( xi ) Some objectionable material was found with a refugee that had come from a neighbouring village.It was wrongly attributed to the Ahmadiyya Community.True, a Government communique later admitted that the material in question had been found with a refugee, but the India press continues to

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 66 attribute it to the Ahmadiyya Community, and the Government does not contradict.( xii ) After imposing the curfew the Police have collaborated with the Jathas in an attack on Qadian.About 200 Ahmadies have so far been killed.The local official report put the figure at 30.When the point was raised before General Thimaya during his visit to Qadian on October 8, local Ahmadies claimed that a single pit contained no less than 40 dead bodies and there were more pits which could be shown to the General if he so desired.But General Thimaya possibly did not have the time to see this for himself.( xiii ) The bodies of the dead were not handed over to the Community, but were thrown into pits and buried without the rites prescribed by Islam.Hindus and Sikhs are well aware that Muslims bury their dead in a certain way.To deny this is barbarous and cruel in the extreme.The Police prevented approach to the dead bodies to hide the number and the identity of the killed.( xiv ) The Police have looted Ahmadi houses, after turning Ahmadies out of them.The looted houses include the house of Sir Mohammad Zafrullah Khan and a house of the Head of the Community.Sir Zafrullah’s house has been looted by the Military itself.The Captain in charge at that time is reported to have made away with the loot.The house is even now occupied by the Military and similarly, hundreds of other houses (including houses of some military officers) have been looted.( xv ) The whole of the population has been forced to squeeze itself into two or three pockets of the town, which ordinarily will not accommodate more than four or five hundred persons living in a mess.People are debarred from moving about even after curfew hours.Those who make the attempt are shot.There are still about 10,000 persons in Qadian and these have been squeezed into two or three small pockets.Scavenging arrangements have come to

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Letters, Correspondence, and Articles 67 a standstill.General Thimaya during his visit on October 8 told the local Major that curfew should have been employed against aggressors not against Ahmadies who were the aggressed and were virtually besieged and we hear that since then the curfew has been lifted but some restrictions still remain.When Ahmadies told General Thimaya that they wanted to stay, he said the local officers should arrange for this but at the same time he told Ahmadies that it will be impossible to protect them.Was not protection a duty of the Government ? ( xvi ) Our sacred places have been desecrated.Bombs have been thrown over our mosques.Two Ahmadies have been shot dead by the Police in our Central Mosque.( xvii ) When the attack took place, about forty women were left behind in a house.Two young Muslims who went back to escort them were fired at by Police and persistent shooting resorted to.One died on the spot and the other was badly wounded.He died a few hours later.The two young men could not be buried in the cemetry in the usual Islamic way on account of restrictions put on movements.They have been buried in a part of the house of the Head of the Ahmadiyya Community.Their buried bodies afford evidence of the incident.( xviii ) When Ahmadies expressed their determination to stay in Qadian except if duly ordered by Government, the flour machines were stopped.There was some excuse at first in the failure of the electric current.But even after the current had been restored, the machines were not allowed to work for several days.At last the Military made some of the machines work.When flour could not be had, people at Qadian had to eat boiled wheat.This resulted in an epidemic of dysentry.( xix ) The Police and the Sikh Jathas attacked the refugees that had come to Qadian from the neighbouring villages and made

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 68 away with about 5,000 heads of cattle inflicting a loss of about twenty lakhs judging by the present prices.British Major escorted these refugees to some distance.He can say how many cattle this convoy had.If they did not have any, where did they go ? Every villager normally possesses cattle.( xx ) Milch animals belonging to Qadian people were also looted by the Police and Military.There is not enough milk now for the town.People are asking for tinned milk for their women and children.Qadian being a rural town ordinarily has a large number of milch animals.The Community encourages their keeping by a system of easily payable loans.( xxi ) Convoys from Qadian were not allowed to take Ahmadi women.When the D.C., Sialkot, pointed out this to the D.C., Gurdaspur, he said that refugees from outside objected.When it was said that when trucks were taken by Ahmadi soldiers to evacuate their families, what right had the local officers to usurp them, he had nothing to say.( xxii ) Convoys from Qadian were also subjected to general searches lasting some time for six hours or more.All unsewed clothes and many sewed clothes were taken away, even table knives were taken away as also licensed arms, which have not yet been returned.This was against the definite understanding between the two Dominions.We have statements given to us by those who had to surrender arms.They are men holding respectable positions in life.For instance one is an ex-Imam of the London Mosque, another is a retired Captain and yet another is a retired Inspector of Police, father of Col.G.N.Ahmadi.( xxiii ) Convoys to Qadian were stopped for one week.The design was to attack and destroy Qadian.The design actually succeeded.This town which had held out for a month and a half was cut off from outside, looted, the residents squeezed into

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Letters, Correspondence, and Articles 69 two small pockets and their private and public buildings taken possession of.If stopping of convoys to Qadian was not with this end in view, then how did the looting and dispossession synchronised with the stopping of convoys ? The plain fact is that the Police was afraid that if a convoy arrived while loot and dispossession were going on, the visitors would become eye- witnesses of what was being done at Qadian.( xxiv ) As hinted above, our college and school buildings have been forcibly occupied.The college building, it is said, has been made over to the Sikh National College, Lahore.The D.C., Gur- daspur, refused to have anything to do with it.The local Major said that his Brigadier had sent orders that the Military should assist the Police in having these places vacated.The college building was built by our own money, the Government not having contributed even a pie to it.( xxv ) Our hospital has also been occupied.Our sick, some of them dangerously wounded, were mercilessly driven out.Wrapped in sheets they were taken by our men to our camp where they are now lying without aid or attention.( xxvi ) Ahmadies of Qadian are unable to visit their forcibly vacated homes even after curfew hours.On October 4, nine Ah- madies who had ventured out to collect their belongings were shot at and killed.Government authorities cannot plead ignorance nor say that these things happened too suddenly to enable them to do anything about them:— ( a )The Head of the Community himself saw Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru at Lahore on 2nd September and explained to him the position at Qadian.He promised to do something, but practically nothing has transpired.( b ) Ahmadies from all parts of the world addressed appeals

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 70 to Lord Mountbatten, Premier Pandit Nehru and East Punjab Government, to save their sacred town from destruction but without any result.( c ) A deputation saw the India High Commissioner for Pakistan who said he had sent two telegrams on the subject but had had no reply.( d ) Ahmadiyya deputations saw the Deputy High Commis- sioner for Pakistan about ten or twelve times.He wrote to the East Punjab Government saying that now that the whole of East Punjab had been cleared of Muslims Qadian was the only place which still had a Muslim population; that it was the religious centre of Ahmadies; and that Ahmadies wanted to stay at Qadian; what harm was there in leaving Qadian alone? But the correspondence had no effect.( e ) Ahmadies went to Jullundur and saw the East Punjab Premier, Dr.Gopi Chand Bhargova and the Home Minister, Sardar Swarn Singh and they assured that Qadian will be discussed on 26th September at Delhi on high level.But the only result was stopping of convoys and attack on Qadian by Jathas lead by Police itself.(f) An Ahmadiyya deputation saw Gandhiji in Calcutta.Letters have been written to both Gandhiji and Union of India Premier Pandit Nehru from Lahore, but nothing resulted.( g ) Sir Mohammad Zafrullah Khan met Lord Mountbatten and sent a telegram to Pandit Nehru, but to no effect.( h ) Mrs.Vijaylakshmi Pandit cabled to her brother Pandit Nehru at the suggestion of Sir Mohammad Zafrullah Khan but nothing followed.We do not say that Gandhiji and Union of India Premier have done nothing.We think they must have done something though they have found no time to reply but there have been no results, as far as the situation at Qadian is concerned.Ahmadies

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Letters, Correspondence, and Articles 71 are being forced out of Qadian against their will, and in spite of their positive affirmation of loyalty, in spite of their affirmation of loyalty in the very words in which the India Dominion leaders seem to require this affirmation, in spite of the tradition of loyalty which the Holy Founder of the Ahmadiyya Movement and his successors have established.If Ahmadies had been allowed to live in peace in their sacred town, not only Ahmadies in India, but in all parts of the world would have sung the praises of the India Government.But they are being forcibly dispossessed of their sacred town.Now ten thousand of them have been packed into accommodation not enough for 500.They are besieged and are living like prisoners.We are telling the officers of Government again and again that according to our creed, loyalty to the State is one of our sacred duties.If the India authorities do not want us to live in Qadian let them say so in writing.Then we will have a clear cut choice before us.But no writing is given.Until, however, such a writing is given, we propose to stick to Qadian.Ahmadi blood will continue to flow in the lanes of Qadian to prove to the world that Ahmadies cannot abandon their sacred places ; when those who hold the place die, there will be others to take their place until God restores our sacred town to us.Aye, Ahmadies will continue to make a present of their blood to the Indian Union.(No answer received).Letter sent by the Chief Secretary, Central Ahmadiyya Organisa- tion, Qadian, to the Deputy Commissioner, Gurdaspur and the Resident Magistrate, Qadian.(Dated Qadian, the 13th October 1947).On behalf of the Ahmadiyya inhabitants of Qadian and of the whole of the Ahmadiyya Community for that matter I beg to lay

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 72 down a few important facts with a view to getting from you an adequate reply.But before I do so I feel it necessary to put it in black and white the importance and sanctity of this holy town of Qadian.As you are well aware this town is held in the highest esteem and is looked upon with very deep rooted sentiments of love and devotion by millions of Ahmadies living in every part of the world.The fact of the matter is that to an Ahmadi Qadian is much dearer and much more precious than his life and all the worldly belongings, and to preserve this town intact he deems no sacrifice too great.But at the same time respect for law and order and for the established government is so instilled into the hearts of Ahmadies that they have been trained to abide by law even under extremely provocative conditions and circumstances.That is why repeatedly our representatives have requested both the civil and military authorities stationed at Qadian to make the Government policy clear to us as to what the Government of India wanted us to do in connection with our staying on in Qadian as peaceful and law-abiding citizens.Time and again our various representatives, Syed Mahmudullah Shah, B.A., G.F.Malik, M.A.and Mirza Abdul Haq, B.A., LL.B., asked these authorities to tell us specifically and unambiguously the real intentions and wishes of the Government of India whether they wish us to continue to live here or to evacuate from this town, so that if the Government scheme was that we should vacate the town then we should seriously think of ways and means to comply with the orders of the Government.We made it clear to the Government authorities that we were ready to co-operate whole heartedly with the Government even under the present unfortunate conditions and circumstances ; and right from the Brigadier Pranch Pai down to the Officer Commanding the military contingents posted at Qadian on the one hand and from the Deputy Commissioner

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Letters, Correspondence, and Articles 73 to the Ilaqa Magistrate on the other were contacted by us in this connection.Everyone of these officials verbally assured us that the Government’s intentions were that we should stick on to Qadian and that our homes and hearths and our lives and our property would be protected under all circumstances.But what actually happened is briefly as follows:— 1.Soon after the announcement of the partition of the two Punjabs and the inclusion of Gurdaspur in East Punjab, Qadian was cut off not only from the outside world but from Batala and Gurdaspur as well completely by rail, post, telegram, or by telephone and by vehicular traffic.2.All the Muslim villages within a radius of twelve miles of Qadian were attacked by organised Jathas under the direct and indirect instigation and protection of the Police.Not only that; the villagers in possession of licensed arms were deprived of them.3.Respectable and responsible members of the Ah- madiyya Community of Qadian were arrested, taken to Gurdaspur and were put behind the bars.We were helpless even to put up a defence for them.Our two representatives, Mirza Abdul Haq, leading advocate of Gurdaspur and Raja Ali Mohammad, a retired Settlement Officer, Lahore, tried to go to Gurdaspur three or four times but were denied all means of transport and escort.One day both these gentlemen left Qadian by car but when only three miles away from the town, they had to turn back.Captain Magh Singh had warned them that their car would be confiscated by the Deputy Commissioner

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 74 if they proceeded without a special permit from him.4.On the 28th of September Mohalla Darul-Shukr was attacked and the inhabitants thereof were ejected by force.5.Meanwhile some of our convoys consisting of sever- al trucks that were sent from Lahore to Qadian to evacuate our women-folk and children were by force taken away from us to defeat us in our intention of sending out our children and ladies to a safe place.Only a week back Lt -Col.Gurbachan Singh of 2nd Punjab told us that a convoy comprising 36 trucks was returned to Lahore from Batala.6.The different Mohallas of Qadian were depopulated, looted and despoiled one after another in rapid succession.7.On the 29th of September the various houses situ- ated in Mohalla Darul-Anwar were looted with the instigation and support of the Police and the Mili- tary detachment (Rajput Contingent under Captain Magh Singh).8.On the 27th and 28th September all the cows, buffaloes, oxen and horses numbering about 5,000 belonging to the refugees and also to the inhabitants of Qadian were taken away by force in one single day in broad day light by the Police, thus depriving us and our children of our milk supply.9.On the 1st of October the Police took possession of all our flour mills and we were not allowed to have our wheat grounded into flour, up till the day before yesterday when Mr.M.S.Soni, the Ilaqa Magistrate

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Letters, Correspondence, and Articles 75 and Major G.A.Wright were good enough to permit us to work two of our mills.10.On the 2nd of October our College and our Research Institute were taken away from us and the Police was posted there.11.On the night between 2nd and 3rd October, 1947, our Principal Mosque, the Masjid Aqsa, was the scene of outrageous desecration when from the neigh- bouring non-Muslim houses a bomb was thrown in it wounding one Ahmadi youth.On the 3rd October shots were fired in the mosque by a Police man who can be identified, resulting in the death of two of our people who were helping some of our women-folk to escape into the mosque and seek refuge there from Sikh hooligans.Lt.-Col.Gurbachan Singh, Major Wright and the Magistrate saw one of our dead men in the mosque, others having been removed by the Sikhs and the Police.The same day three of our Mohallas, viz., Darul-Rahmat, Aqsa and Fazl were attacked by overwhelming Sikh Jathas actively helped by armed Police constables who not only looted almost all the houses completely but also killed a large number of Ahmadies.12.On the 3rd October all our Ahmadies living in six Mohallas had to flee for their lives and take refuge in the T.I.High School Boarding House.Several thousand women had to be crowded in a small space while our men were compelled to stay out during the night.All these men and women had had to quit their mohallas almost in their shirt sleeves, most of

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 76 them bare-footed and bare-headed.Ever since our children and women are living under extremely trying conditions.They have no bedding, no clothes and are even without the bare necessaries of life.13.Ever since the 3rd all the Ahmadies of Qadian are living practically in two separate refugee camps, so to speak, one in Qadian proper and the other more than half a mile away from it.All the means of communication between the two have been practically cut off.It is only by the courtesy of Major Wright and the Magistrate that both these camps are enabled to inter-communicate.In the night when village Bhaini was attacked by a Jatha of several thousand Sikhs for three hours shots continued to be fired at our houses from the Hindu and Sikh houses behind Masjid Aqsa.14.On the morning of the 4th after the curfew was lifted some of our people attempted to leave the old part of the town of Qadian and go out to see their kith and kin in the other camp, but several of them were shot dead when they passed by the non-Muslims and the Sikh Police without any provocation or excuse.The worst part of this dastardly outrage is that we were not permitted to take away our dead.All the dead bodies so far have been disposed of in some manner unknown to us.15.On the 5th when our position had been extremely un- tenable and when we felt that our very existence had become jeopardised, three of our representatives, Mirza Aziz Ahmad, M.A., Retd.A.D.M.and Amir

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Letters, Correspondence, and Articles 77 of Qadian, Mirza Abdul Haq, B.A., LL.B., Advocate, and G.F.Malik, M.A., contacted Mr.Soni, the Ilaqa Magistrate who was requested to make available our people their houses that they may live in some rea- sonable comfort even though they had been robbed of all their personal effects.The Magistrate told them that he would let them know in a day or two if he could accede to their request.But this reasonable and justifiable request was never acceded to.16.On the 5th of this month our Hospital that has rendered medical aid to hundreds of thousands of non-Muslims ever since its inception was taken possession of with Police aid by one Dr.Kidar Nath, S.A.S., a local private practitioner.Our wounded who were in the hospital, were mercilessly turned out.17.Likewise all our factories have been forcibly taken away from us, the Magistrate having informed us that our Star Hosiery Works has already been thoroughly looted.Incidentally it may be mentioned that our representative, Mirza Abdul Haq, Advocate, had requested the Magistrate to allow us to take out some of our blankets from the Star Hosiery so that we may give these to our ladies and children between three to four thousands in number who were without any covering or bedding.The learned Magistrate kindly assured us that he would let us have some of the blankets.But later on he told us that he was quite helpless.18.We have no hesitation in saying that in spite of all his professed sympathy with us and good intentions

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 78 the Magistrate has not been able to protect us against the high-handedness of Police.19.For several days the Ahmadi population of Qadian were denied the services of the sweepers with the result that extremely unhygienic conditions prevailed and the sanitation was and still is in a woeful state.Our plight was all the more aggravated by the fact that thousands of refugees were dumped on us who were made to stay here for weeks and weeks.Thanks to the Ilaqa Magistrate sweeperesses were later ordered to do the cleaning up and remove the filth.Ahmadi men and women living packed up in the two camps have suffered much from these awfully insanitary conditions.There are dozens of cases of dysentry and cholera.20.On the night of 7th October four bombs were thrown in Masjid Aqsa from the adjoining Hindu and Sikh houses, one of these having exploded with terrific shock.Simultaneously three bombs were thrown in the houses near the Boarding House outside the town where our people are living.One of these bombs ex- ploded as a result of which a woman suffered severe burning.Eight or nine shots also were fired at these houses at the same time, one of these having hit the western wall of the Boarding House.21.I have already mentioned the forcible usurpation of our Hospital, apart from which all of our chemists’ shops have been closed to us.We are denied access to them.You can easily imagine our predicament.22.On the 3rd, 4th and 5th October many young girls

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Letters, Correspondence, and Articles 79 were forcibly abducted by non-Muslim goondas who under cover of general confusion and uproar took the opportunity of getting hold of the young trembling and frightened girls and confined them in the neighbouring houses, where unspeakable outrages were committed.Only a few of them have been recovered to tell their tales of woe and dishonour.23.The curfew was clamped on the town in spite of the fact that not a single incident had occurred to justi- fy its imposition.But whenever it was lifted it was noticed that the period of curfew had been taken ad- vantage of for indiscriminate looting and robbing by the non-Muslim inhabitants who were exceptionally active during the curfew hours.Several time our peo- ple saw with their own eyes from their house tops non-Muslims indulging in lawlessness and robbing; many of these were definitely recognised.We are forced to draw the conclusion that the curfew was imposed to handicap us and to help our enemies who committed many crimes with impunity.24.In view of all the facts enumerated above we are constrained to believe that the oral assurances of the Government through its accredited Military and Civil officials about the protection of our lives and property are belied by their actions.We are being treated, to all intents and purposes, as prisoners of war.As has been remarked above we are law-abiding to a fault, and if the Government honestly thinks that our presence here is a menace to its stability or if it is convinced that we should quit this place, all that

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 80 the Government needs to do is to say so.But it is most unfortunate that their actions are not consistent with their word.I beg you to tell me clearly and unequivocally what the Government really wants us to do.If it is the intention of the Government that we should stay on in our sacred city for which we can sacrifice our lives, our wealth, and everything belonging to us, then we should be given real and effective protection in every respect.Lukewarm or half-hearted measures won’t do.We can put up with all the indignities and discomforts if we are only permitted to live in Qadian.N.B.—This letter was delivered to Mr.Soni, Resident Magistrate, Qadian, for conveying to the Deputy Commissioner, Gurdaspur, (The letter remains unanswered).Press Statement issued by Mr.A.R.Dard of the Ahmadiyya Headquarters, Lahore, rebutting announcement attributed by the All India Radio, Delhi, to Major General Thimaya.(Dated Lahore, the 13th October 1947).A Delhi broadcast from the All India Radio on the 10th instant referred to Major General Thimaya, as having paid a visit to Qadian along with two Muslim Brigadiers of the Pakistan Army.The broadcast stated that this party had found that there had been no attack on Qadian, and that things appeared to be normal.I am sure this report has been wrongly attributed to General Thimaya.I myself was invited by General Cariappa to accompany the party to Qadian and General Thimaya was almost wonderstruck with the change that had come over Qadian after his previous visit

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Letters, Correspondence, and Articles 81 to that place a month and a half earlier.In fact his words were: “Qadian now looks like a dead city as compared with the busy town humming with life that I had found in my first visit.” The party was told that an attack had taken place and this was corroborated by Major Wright in charge of the local Military, and though the correct number of those killed could not be accurately ascertained, owing to the dead having been disposed of by the Police itself, it was generally agreed that the casualties were pretty large.In fact the Ahmadiyya representatives at Qadian told the visiting party that the casualties numbered about 200, and that they could show the party as many as 40 dead bodies dumped into a single pit, and that there were several other pits into which dead bodies were thrown without their having been approached or identified by their relatives.The party was also told that there had been widespread looting, and that many thousand heads of cattle had been forcibly taken away by Sikh Jathas who were helped by the Police.We were also told that many Muslim Mohallas had been evacuated by the Police and the Military, and several Ahmadi public buildings had been forcibly taken possession of by them.About 40 cases of abduction were also reported, and 2 abducted women, subsequently rescued, were actually produced before the party.Maj.General Thimaya saw and heard all this tale of woe and misery, and frankly confessed that he agreed with what had been related or represented to him.In fact he himself volunteered the suggestion that in Qadian curfew was unjustified and uncalled for, and ordered that it should be removed.He also promised that Muslim Military would soon be sent to Qadian.In view of the above it is indeed a mystery to me how the Delhi Radio attributed to General Thimaya the report that

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 82 every thing was normal at Qadian.I do hope that there is some misunderstanding which will soon be cleared up.Incidentally I may mention that when General Cariappa arranged to send this party to Qadian, his attitude was very sympathetic and he really meant to help the Qadian people if it was proved that they were wronged.My faith in his fair-mindedness is still as strong as it was before we went to Qadian, and I am sure he will soon come to the help of a peaceful, law-abiding community which has been so grossly misrepresented and so unjustly treated by the local administration.Englishman’s eye-witness account of foulest Atrocities on Muslim men and women committed in Qadian.(Dawn, Karachi, dated October 16, 1947, quoting from Dawn, London Office.) London, Oct.10.—Mr.Bashir Orchard, an English Muslim who returned to London last week after six months stay in the Punjab, told Dawn that he had seen with his own eyes some of the foulest atrocities being committed on innocent men, women and children, who had no other fault except that they happened to be Muslims.Mr.Orchard, who embraced Islam in the jungles of Burma in March 1945 when he was serving with the 14th Army as an officer, returned to India early this year to study Islam.He passed most of the time at Qadian, studying the Islamic theology and Urdu.He said: “When the award of the Boundary Commission, which had been appointed to demarcate the boundaries of the two parts of the Punjab, was revealed, I was at Qadian, a predominantly Muslim area.It came as a great shock to the Muslims when they

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Letters, Correspondence, and Articles 83 came to know that three out of four tehsils in the district of Gurdaspur had been allotted to the Dominion of India, despite the fact that it was a Muslim majority district.Qadian fell in one of these three tehsils and I vividly remember how stunned were the Muslims of this town who represent 85 per cent of its population, when they heard of this most unfair and unjust award of the Punjab Boundary Commission.“This bombshell fell on August 17, and from that moment the Muslims became the victims of the most brutal kind of aggression and cruelty.“The Sikhs, unobstructed by the Indian Government, took the law into their own hands, and started a sudden and well-planned and systematic massacre and expulsion of the Muslims in the district of Gurdaspur.They, armed with illegal and unlicensed weapons, attacked village after village, burning, destroying and looting whatever they could lay their hands on.They committed the foulest atrocities on innocent men, women, children who had no other fault except that they happened to be Muslims.“From the top of the minaret in Qadian which serves as an outstanding landmark, I could daily see five or six Muslim villages going up in smoke and flames.Long treks of refugees could be seen approaching from all directions carrying a few precious belongings in bundles on their heads.Some succeeded in driving some of their cattle before them.Many never reached Qadian.They were attacked and looted on the way.The state of these people on their arrival was really pitiable and their tales of woe heart-rending.Their dear and near ones had been cruelly done to death before their very eyes, and no distinction had been made in the case of women and children.“Frequently I visited the local Hospital where a hard-worked staff was being kept continually busy.The sight of some of those

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 84 helpless people who had been made the deliberate victims of cruelty really upset me more than any of the battle scenes and casualties that I had seen during the war on the continent and in Burma.“The policy that the Indian Government is adopting about this town (Qadian) and its Muslim population, is absolutely contrary to the promises and intentions uttered by them from time to time in connection with the welfare and protection of the minorities.The town has been virtually cut off from the outside world.The rail service was suspended on August 12, and was shortly followed by the cutting off of all telegraphic and telephonic communications.Two private two-seater aeroplanes were forbidden to land or take off under an absurd and false allegation that they had been used to bomb and machine-gun Sikh villages.“I left Qadian on September 15, in an armed convoy of two army lorries, and eventually reached Lahore.I was fortunate to arrive without any incident.A convoy that followed which was loaded to capacity with refugees was attacked a few miles from Qadian by a gang of Sikhs.” Telegram sent to Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru, Premier Indian Union by the Chief Secretary Central Ahmadiyya Organisation, Lahore.(Dated Lahore, the 21st October 1947) A Karachi press telegram says that you deny arrest and harrassment of Qadian Muslims and that the Ahmadiyya Community is being protected by the Military under the supervision of a Magistrate.It appears that the old story of the Congress versus Government is being repeated when the old Government despite harrassing the Congress denied all allegations of harrassment and the Congress

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Letters, Correspondence, and Articles 85 felt helpless against stronger propaganda.Two secretatries of the Central Ahmadiyya Organisation, one assistant secretary, three missionaries and several other workers have been arrested at Qadian on false charges, vexatious house searches including that of the Head of the Ahmadiyya Community have been made, mohalla after mohalla has been forcibly evacuated and looted, public buildings of the Ahmadiyya Community including the Talimul Islam Degree College building, the Talimul Islam High School building and the Noor Hospital, have been taken possession of and our men ejected, Ahmadiyya Press and the Central Library have been sealed, several women have been abducted, and about 200 Muslims have been killed without their dead bodies being allowed to be approached and burried by their relatives; and yet you say there has been no harrassment and that the Ahmadiyya Community is being protected.Would to God your own former history had provided you with a lesson for a fairer treatment of weak and oppressed parties! (The telegram remains unanswered).Editorial by Mr.F.W.Buston, Editor of the Civil & Military Gazette, Lahore, in its issue of 23rd October 1947.TEST CASE.Qadian has become, in the eyes of the world, a living test of India’s intentions towards the minorities in her territory.The Ahmadiyya Community, for whom the town of Qadian is far more than a headquarters, are close-knit, hard-working and highly disciplined.Scrupulous loyalty to the Government under which they live is with them almost an article of religious faith.Had Qadian, in the division of the Punjab, become part of Pakistan, and had Pakistan developed into a theocratic state, Ahmadies might well have apprehended bitter

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 86 persecution in the name of religious orthodoxy.As the division was in fact made, they had less reason for apprehension and had reasonable grounds for expecting a continuance of their peaceful existence.Events have proved the futility of such hopes.The fact that they were Muslims drew upon them the wrath and hatred of members of minority communities who had been forced to flee from the West Punjab and who sought to assuage their own wounds by inflicting similar sufferings on Qadianis.Measures taken for self- protection seem to have been regarded as evidence of aggressive intentions and steps were taken by the East Punjab Government, in total disregard of Ahmadiyya traditions and past behaviour, which largely left them at the mercy of their enemies.Only when self- defence became impossible was evacuation thought of, and most of the women, children and old men of the community resident in Qadian have been rescued under military escort.The remainder, nearly two thousand in number, are confined to the old town (village would be a better word), where conditions are almost insupportable.They are little better than prisoners.Their school and hospital have been “taken over” and many of their residential bungalows looted.The Government of India may declare, with what truth thorough investigation alone can reveal, that all its actions in connection with Qadian were taken with a view to its protection against seething hostility throughout the countryside.But its denial of allegations of arrest and harrassment is contrary to facts well established by independent observers.What is needed now from Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru are not disclaimers but positive constructive action which will prove to the world that the declarations of India’s spokesmen are not mere words and that the writ of the Government of India runs throughout the Dominion, even in the East Punjab.

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Letters, Correspondence, and Articles 87 Letter from the Chief Secretary, Central Ahmadiyya Organisation, Lahore, to Mr.Sri Parakasa, High Commissioner for India in Pakistan, Karachi.(Dated Lahore, the 25th October 1947) Hazrat Khalifatulmasih, Head of the Ahmadiyya Community, Qadian, District Gurdaspur, now at Rattan Bagh, Lahore, has received a report from his followers in Karachi to the effect that you were pleased to receive a deputation of the local Ahmadies and that you very kindly sympathised with the most sad and tragic happenings at Qadian, our headquarters, and promised to help the Qadian case to the best of your power.I hasten to thank you for the kind and sympathetic hearing you gave our Karachi brethren and to supply you with a brief summary of the long tale of woe and misery that our headquarters has gone through during the last two months and a half.1.Our tragic story began with sudden and wholesale attacks on Muslim villages of the Gurdaspur district by armed gangs of Sikhs who were helped by the local Police.This designed campaign immediately followed the announcement of the Boundary Commission Award which assigned our district, in spite of its being a Muslim majority area, to East Punjab.One by one the Muslim villages fell, their inhabitants were driven out and their property looted, accompanied, of course, by ruthless killing, arson and abduction.Many of these villages were inhabited by Ahmadies who suffered the same fate.In fact they were worse sufferers as they resisted Sikh Jathas and yielded only when the Police or the Military sided with the attackers.The gory circle round-about Qadian was

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 88 thus being gradually reduced and we knew that our own tragic fate was fast approaching.2.In the meantime the local Police were preparing the ground for an attack on Qadian proper which was looked upon as a stronghold of Muslims and whose Ahmadiyya population (90 per cent of the town) was determined to stick to their sacred headquarters un- less forced by the authorities to evacuate.Responsible Ahmadies including two Secretaries of the Central Ahmadiyya Organisation, one Assistant Secretary, two missionaries and several other workers were ar- rested on trumped-up charges, private cars owned by Ahmadies were confiscated, the movement of our men to the neighbouring Ahmadi villages with a view to knowing the fate of their brethren there was stopped, and all communications—railway, telegraphic, tele- phonic and postal—were cut off and road traffic practically closed.The daily swelling number of Mus- lim refugees (which finally reached the figure of fifty thousand and many of whom were fed by the Central Ahmadiyya Organisation) from the neighbouring vil- lages also added to our complications.3.Then followed attacks on Muslim refugees gathered at Qadian from the neighbouring villages resulting in about 5,000 heads of cattle being looted, several women being abducted and some even raped and a number of men being shot by the Police on flimsy grounds.4.Side by side with these attacks on Muslim refugees from outside, the Police and the Military resorted to a policy of vexatious house searches at Qadian itself

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Letters, Correspondence, and Articles 89 and even the house and office of the Head of the Ahmadiyya Community were searched and, though nothing incriminating was found, the Military took away some licensed arms which have not been so far returned in spite of repeated requests.5.This opened the way to the looting of Ahmadi houses including that of the Head of the Community and of Sir Mohammad Zafrullah Khan.The last mentioned house is reported to have been looted by the Military itself working under the orders of Captain Magh Singh of the 2nd Rajput Regiment which was then stationed there.The houses of Lt.-Col.Dr.Ata Ullah and Major Mirza Daud Ahmad and Captain Mirza Sharif Ahmad and Mr.A.R.Dard, ex-Imam of the London Mosque, were also looted, not to speak of many others owned by other Ahmadies.6.The ground was now ready for a general attack which was made on the 3rd of October, 1947, by thousands of Sikhs from the neighbouring villages aided and helped by the Police and the Military.Mohalla after Mohalla of Qadian was attacked resulting in about 200 Muslims being killed (including one uncle of a wife of the Head of the Ahmadiyya Community and one Assistant Secretary of the Central Ahmadiyya Organisation) and about fifty women being abducted and property worth lakhs of rupees being looted.The dead bodies of the killed were not allowed to be approached or buried by their brethern or co- religionists in order to hide the identity and exact number of those killed.

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 90 7.To crown all, our public buildings built by our own money at Qadian including the Talim-ul-Islam College, the Talim-ul-Islam High School, the Fazl- i-Omar Research Institute, the Noor Hospital were forcibly taken possession of and our men ejected and even patients driven out.This was followed by the forcible sealing of our Press and our Central Library owned by the Central Ahmadiyya Organisation.8.Against all this tale of loot, killing and abduction (not to speak of our forcible ejection from our own buildings) no arrests have so far been made of any culprit which is sure proof of the Police itself being accomplice, while in contrast to this about a dozen responsible Ahmadies have been arrested some of whom are still in goal.9.One thing more I beg leave to mention though it may perhaps pain you the most.We have been sending (beside oral representations) written representations through post and telegraph to the East Punjab Government and their officials as well as to the Central Government (Pandit Nehru, Mr.Patel and others) at New Delhi but with no practical results and even no acknowledgment.Major General Thimaya visited Qadian along with two Pakistan Brigadiers and one representative of the Ahmadiyya Community who was invited by General Cariappa himself to accompany the party and though Major General Thimaya agreed to what had been placed before him by Ahmadies at Qadian, yet, what is still a mystery to us, the All-India Radio, Delhi, later attributed to him the view that no attack was ever made at Qadian and that everything

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Letters, Correspondence, and Articles 91 was normal.We possess written evidence of 14 Hindus, Sikhs and Indian Christians stating that an attack on Qadian was actually made.8 Similarly a party of four independent British Press representatives went to Qadian and having been impressed by the tragic events there they cabled their views to the London Press but unfortunately this too was contradicted by the Government of India on the ground that the cablegram of these Pressmen mentioned two thousand killed while actually the number was much less whereas the truth is that when referring to two thousand killed the British journalists had in view not only those killed at Qadian proper but also those who were killed on the way when the foot convoy of refugees leaving Qadian for Sialkot was attacked.10.Anyhow, Sir, I have given you a very brief summa- ry of the recent happenings at Qadian the Ahma- di population of which is now confined to a small pocket (the other pocket has since been evacuated) of two particularly sacred mosques, the sacred house of the Holy Founder of the Ahmadiyya Movement, his graveyard, the old guest-house of the Commu- nity and some adjoining houses.Would to God the Government of India and the Government of East Punjab could yet see their way to leaving at least this small pocket of peaceful and law-abiding citizens un- molested.This is of course without prejudice to our rightful claim to other parts of Qadian the entire area 8 Evidence of one Hindu, one Sikh and one Christian is being published in this booklet though naturally names are at present being suppressed.[Publishers]

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 92 of which is sacred in our eyes.11.Two very enlightening statements 9 written by the Head of our Community and sent to Mr.Gandhi through his personal representative Pandit Sundar Lal and the third through Rai Bahadur Mukand Lal Puri are attached for your perusal as also an affidavit by Ch.Aziz Ahmad describing how Sir Mohammad Zafrullah Khan’s house at Qadian was looted.Evidence of one Hindu, one Sikh and one Christian (out of a total of 14) to the effect that an attack on Qadian did take place.Originals (in Urdu) preserved and may be shown to well-meaning responsible leaders.Statement of………..(Hindu) resident of Qadian At the time of the attack made by Sikhs on Mohalla Darul-Futooh and Mohalla Darul-Rahmat, Qadian I was in my house.When I heard about the abduction of the daughters of and others (all Muslims) I was grieved and worried, for we too have daughters.The attackers were (local) Sikhs and refugee Sikhs and it was they that committed looting.(Sd.)………… (Hindu) dated 11th October 1947.Statement of………..(Sikh) resident of village………..near Qadian I witnessed some scenes of the attack made by Sikhs on Qadian 9 One of these statements relating to the happenings at Qadian proper as well as the affidavit of Ch.Aziz Ahmad are being published in this booklet.[Publishers]

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Letters, Correspondence, and Articles 93 on 3rd October 1947.More than four thousand persons took part in the attack.I saw the attacks.Made on Mohalla Darul-Rahmat and Mohalla Ghumaran.The looters were carrying away property worth thousands of rupees.(Sd.)………….(Sikh) of………..dated 15th October 1947.Statement of.........(Indian Christian) resident of Qadian The attack on Mohalla Darul-Rahmat, Mohalla Darul-Futooh and Mohalla Ghumaran was made by Sikhs of the neighbouring villages, viz., Rampur, Rajada, Nathpur, Cheema, Kotla, Dalla, Dhanne, etc.Most of the attackers were Sikhs and some were sweepers—Mazhabi Sikhs.We saw 40 to 50 dead bodies in Mohalla Darul-Rahmat and 20 to 22 dead in the (Noor) Hospital area and 20 to 22 in Ghumaran Street (all Muslims)………… Hindus and Sikhs took away their dead bodies themselves.(Sd )………..(Indian Christian).In spite of the above quoted impartial or rather anti-partial evi- dence (which is only a part of the total evidence in our possession) it is a pity that the topmost leader of the Indian Union—Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru and the Area Commander of Jullundur, Major General Thimayya, should claim that there had been no attack on Qadian.It appears we should now look to God alone for succour and indeed He alone is the Helper.

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 94 Desecration of sacred places at Qadian, being an Air Mail letter sent by Foreign Secretary, Central Ahmadiyya Organisation, Lahore, to Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru, Premier New Delhi, while this booklet was in the press.(Dated Lahore, 4th November 1947) We have again and again approached you during the last two and a half months inviting your attention to what was happening at Qadian and requesting you to kindly take some visible action to save Qadian from the state of extreme lawlessness in which it has been plunged.No visible action has, however, so far been taken with the exception of sending a few representatives, but that too without any visible results.On the other hand, what Qadian has been reduced to, must be well known to you.Practically the whole town has been forcibly cleared of Muslims.Only about one thousand Ahmadies remain, and they are living under intolerable conditions.The story of murder, loot, abduction, vexatious house searches, forcible ejection of our men from our public buildings and private houses and seizure of licensed arms need not be retold.We have already said so much on the point.Our recent anxiety, however, is the fate of our sacred places.A universally accepted principle in all inter-communal disputes and even in armed conflicts is that places and institutions held sacred by any people will be made immune to attacks or actions derogatory to their sacred character.I think you will remember that in one of the earliest inter-dominion conferences it was declared as a mutually agreed policy that places held sacred by any community will be protected and that any harm done to them will be made good at public expense.According to information received by us desecration of our sacred places at Qadian has already started.The Masjid Noor, a

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Letters, Correspondence, and Articles 95 large mosque attached to our T.I.College and school and also used by Ahmadi public of Mohalla Darul-Uloom, is being used as a sort of dhobi-ghat, while the interior of the mosque is being used for holding Sikh and Hindu public meetings.A mosque (known as Masjid Khojian) in the non-Ahmadi Muslim quarter has been declared an Arya Samaj Mandir and a notice board placed on it to that effect.The minarets of an Ahmadi mosque in Mohalla Darul-Rahmat are reported to have been pulled down presumably to destroy its identity as a mosque.There may have also been other examples of desecration of sacred places.We beg leave to address you once again and request you in the name of all that is holy to kindly take timely action though God only knows whether you will be able to do that or not.Qadian, as you know, is a sacred town, being not only the birth and burial place of the Holy Founder of the Ahmadiyya Movement but also closely associated with his life-long activities.It is also the living and guiding centre of the Ahmadiyya Community.Besides, it is full of mosques and institutions which are held sacred by Muslims.Your dominion had agreed to abide by the principle of affording protection and immunity to all sacred places from aggression and disrespect.We address this letter to you in the earnest hope that your Government might yet move and prevent the process of desecration from advancing any further.For the use of the Indian Union and East Punjab authorities I am attaching a list of twenty-three mosques (nineteen belonging to the Ahmadiyya Community and four to others), one Idgah, four particularly sacred houses including the house wherein the Holy Founder of the Ahmadiyya Movement passed his days of life and seven graveyards including one special graveyard of the Ahmadiyya Community (known as Maqbara Bahishti) in which lie buried the sacred remains of the Holy Founder of our Movement and

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 96 his selected disciples and devotees.We request you to declare that these sacred places will be honoured and protected, that they will not be put to any use other than for which they were originally meant, and that the physical harm already done will be made good.So far as our mosques are concerned, we are prepared to bear our own expenses.We also request you to kindly take some visible steps to show that your Government is determined to protect and honour all sacred places of Muslims whether in East Punjab or elsewhere and of course we expect the same from the Pakistan Government with regard to the sacred places of non-Muslims left in West Punjab and other Muslim provinces.List of Qadian Mosques and other sacred places:— 1.Masjid Mubarak adjoining the House of the Holy Founder of the Ahmadiyya Movement in the old part of the town.2.Masjid Aqsa, the Central Ahmadiyya Mosque, con- taining the minaret, in the old part of the town, next to Bara Bazar.3.Masjid Fazl in Mohalla Araian in the old part of the town.4.Masjid in Mohalla Nasirabad.5.Masjid in Mohalla Darul-Anwar.6.Masjid in sub-village Qadirabad.7.Another Masjid in sub-village Qadirabad.8.Masjid in Mohalla Darul-Futooh.9.Another Masjid near the Star Hosiery in Mohalla Darul-Futooh.

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Letters, Correspondence, and Articles 97 10.Masjid in Mohalla Darul-Rahmat.11.Masjid in Mohalla Darul-Yusr.12.Masjid Noor in Mohalla Darul-Uloom.13.Masjid in Mohalla Darul-Shukr.14.Masjid in sub-village Ahmadabad.15.Masjid in Mohalla Darul-Fazl.16.Masjid in Mohalla Darul Saat.17.Masjid in Mohalla Darul Barakat-Gharbi.18.Masjid in Mohalla Darul Barakat-Sharki.19.Masjid in Mohalla Islamabad.Beside the above Ahmadiyya Mosques (nineteen in number), there are four Mosques at Qadian belonging to non-Ahmadi Muslims.These are:— 1.Masjid Araian in Mohalla Araian.2.Masjid Khojian in Mohalla Khojian.3.Masjid in Mohalla Darul-Futooh opposite to the Star Hosiery.4.Masjid in Mohalla Islamabad.Besides the above twenty three Mosques, we have a spacious Idgah in Qadian near the boundary of village Nathpur, as also the following particularly sacred houses:— 1.The house, known as Darul-Masih, wherein lived the Holy Founder of the Ahmadiyya Movement and his family.2.The house of the first Khalifa of the Holy Founder.3.The Madrasa Ahmadiyya wherein Muslim missionar- ies are housed, taught and trained.4.The Mehman Khana (Guest House) for housing the visitors that come to seek religious instruction and

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 98 spiritual blessing.Then there are the following seven graveyards beside two pri- vate graveyards and one used by the village sweepers:— 1.The graveyard attached to the Idgah.2.The graveyard attached to sub-village Ahmadabad.3.The graveyard near the new Precision Manufacturing Co.’s building.4.The graveyard attached to the sub-village Qadirabad.5.The graveyard near Mohalla Nasirabad popularly known as “Qabristan Bachagan”.6.The graveyard near Mohalla Babul-Anwar known as Qabristan Rori.7.The sacred graveyard of the Ahmadiyya Community known as “Bahishti-Maqbara” near the old Mango Garden.This graveyard contains the Tomb of the Holy Founder of the Ahmadiyya Movement and his selected disciples and other devotees.

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The following are a series of tables and figures compiled by the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community during the Partition era disturbances with regards to the violence that took place in Qadian and its surrounding areas.These tables were included as appendices at the end of Qadian—A Test Case and have been reproduced here in their original form along with all the original headings.

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4 FIGURES AND TABLES APPENDIX A List of Muslim villages raided and villagers killed round-about Qadian ( Contains figures collected up to 5th September 1947 ) Serial No.Name of village Thana Tahsil Number of dead Remarks 1 Winjwan … Batala Batala 45 2 Mokol … Sri Gobind- pur Do 15 3 Shahpur … Do Do 50 4 Bhattiwal … Do Do 4 5 Faizulla Chak … Dhariwal Gurdas- pur 180 6 Lodhipura … Do Do 45 Muslims fled to Faizullah Chak where this number was killed 7 Danianwali … Do Do 160

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 102 Serial No.Name of village Thana Tahsil Number of dead Remarks 8 Bazid Chak … Do Do 20 9 Bebal Chak … Do Do 26 10 Mallian Faqiran … Do Do 35 11 Zafarwal … Do Do 400 Mixed popula- tion.Almost all Muslims reported killed including women and children.Many women abducted.12 Fajupura … Do Do 400 13 Theh Ghulam Nabi Do Do 50 14 Sujanpur … Do Do 18 15 Khunda … Do Do 150 16 Kahuuwan … Kahnuwan Do 5 17 Sathiali … Do Do 3 18 Chak Yaqub … Do Do 4 19 Kotli Rawlan … Do Do 40 20 Noshera … Dhariwal Gurdas- pur 9 21 Nawan Pind … Do Do 250 Muslim popu- lation 250.All reported killed.

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Figures and Tables 103 Serial No.Name of village Thana Tahsil Number of dead Remarks 22 Bheni Mian Khan … Kahnuwan Do 15 23 Jagowal … Do Do 15 24 Dharamkot Bagga … Batala Batala 3 25 Bheni Milwan … Kahnuwan Gurdas- pur 23 26 Virk … Dhariwal Do 95 27 Bhoal … Sri Gobind- pur Batala 50 Including fifteen persons burnt to death.28 Ladu Bhanan … Do Do 40 29 Nat (Purian) … Batala Do 17 30 Zahidpur … Do Do 8 31 Dhapai … Sri Gobind- pur Do 15 There was only one Muslim family which was totally killed including one child aged six months.32 Bhamri … Do Do 1 One woman killed.33 Awan … Batala Do 5 34 Kotla Soba Singh … Sri Gobind- pur Do 4 35 Darapur … Kahnuwan Gurdas- pur 21 36 Dalla Goria … Do Do 30 37 Bakhtpura … Do Do 15 38 Sekhwan … Do Do 4 Including two women.39 Athwal … Dhariwal Do 1 40 Padda … Sri Gobind- pur Batala 1 41 Balrampur … Sri Gobind- pur Batala 24 Including 7 women and 8 children.42 Lilan … Batala Do 3 Including 1 woman and 1 child.

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 104 Serial No.Name of village Thana Tahsil Number of dead Remarks 43 Tughalwala … Kahnuwan Gurdas- pur 5 Including one woman and one child.44 Tibber … Gurdaspur Do 10 Including 8 children.45 Wela Bajo … Sri Gobind- pur Batala 250 Out of the whole Muslim population only 5 are said to have escaped.46 Buddhakot … Dhariwal Do 4 47 Waryah … Sri Gobind- pur Do 1 48 Moor … Do Do 40 Including 25 women and 3 children.49 Mathola … Do Do 15 50 Sultanpur Chima … Do Do 3 Including one woman.51 Dhindse … Kahnuwan Gurdas- pur 2 52 Ahmadabad … Dhariwal Do 70 Including 20 women and 10 children.53 Deriwala … Do Do 1 Total 2700 N.B.—Later figures very high.

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Figures and Tables 105 APPENDIX B List of Muslim Villages burn round-about Qadian.( Dated 5th September 1947 ) Serial No.Name of village.Thana.Tahsil.Remarks.1 Winjwan … Batala Sadr Batala 2 Dialgarh … Do Do 3 Bahadur Hussain Do Do 4 Dhayya … Do Do 5 Chak Kotla (Dalla) Do Do 6 Burj … Do Do 7 Karwalian … Do Do 8 Khan Fateh … Do Do 9 Zahidpur … Do Do 10 Nat (Purian) … Do Do 11 Mokal … Sri Gobindpur Do 12 Shahpur … Do Do 13 Moor … Do Do 14 Waryah … Sri Gobindpur Batala 15 Bhamri … Do Do 16 Kohali … Do Do 17 Bhoal … Do Do 18 Ladu Bhanan … Do Do 19 Kandila … Do Do 20 Bulpur … Do Do 21 Bans Bareili … Do Do 22 Aujla … Gurdaspur Gurdaspur 23 Faizulla Chak … Dhariwal Do 24 Bazid Chak … Do Do 25 Behbal Chak … Do Do 26 Zafarwal … Do Do 27 Fajupura … Do Do 28 Theh Ghulam Nabi … Do Do 29 Sujanpur … Do Do

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 106 Serial No.Name of Village.Thana.Tahsil.Remarks.30 Khunda … Dhariwal Gurdaspur 31 Nawan Pind … Do Do 32 Noshera … Do Do 33 Satkoha … Do Do 34 Mundikaral … Do Do 35 Dhariwal … Do Do 36 Virk … Do Do 37 Kotli Rawlan … Kahnuwan Do 38 Dhendse … Do Do 39 Chhina Retwala Do Do 40 Langar Kot … Do Do 41 Bharu Harni … Do Do 42 Haveli Harni … Do Do 43 Pakhari Harni … Do Do 44 Bharu Harni … Do Do 45 Dalla Goria … Do Do 46 Bakhtpura … Do Do 47 Pindori Mayya Singh … Kahnuwan Gurdaspur 48 Kaure … Sri Gobindpur Batala 49 Mansoor Manj … Dhariwal Gurdaspur 50 Ahmadabad … Do Do 51 Lodhipura … Do Do 52 Tughalwala … Sri Gobindpur Batala 53 Mathola … Do Do 54 Sultanpur China … Do Do N.B.—Most of the villages were burnt partly and towards the end the Sikhs were wiser to leave houses intact for their own rehabilitation.

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Figures and Tables 107 APPENDIX C List of Muslim Villages (round-about Qadian) whose property has been looted ( Dated 5th September 1947 ) Serial No.Name of village Thana Tehsil Remarks 1 Winjwan … Batala Batala 2 Dialgarh … Do Do 3 Lil Kalan … Do Do 4 Shahpur … Do Do 5 Bahadur Hussain Do Do 6 Rasulpur … Do Do 7 Chak Kotla (Dalla) Do Do 8 Muradpura … Do Do 9 Panjgarain … Do Do 10 Dhandoi … Do Do 11 Awan … Do Do 12 Harsian … Do Do 13 Khokhar … Do Do 14 Gilanwali … Batala Batala 15 Qiladarshan Singh Do Do 16 Dakhla … Do Do 17 Kandyal … Do Do 18 Mokal … Sri Gobindpur Do 19 Kandila … Do Do 20 Faizulla Chak … Dhariwal Gurdaspur 21 Lodhipur … Do Do 22 Mansur Manj … Do Do 23 Danian Wali … Do Do 24 Bazid Chak … Do Do 25 Behbal Chak … Do Do 26 Malian Fakiran … Do Do 27 Zafarwal … Do Do

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 108 Serial No.Name of village Thana Tehsil Remarks 28 Fajupura … Do Do 29 Theh Ghulam Nabi Do Do Muslims looted.Mixed population 30 Sujanpur … Dhariwal Gurdaspur 31 Khunda … Do Do 32 Deriwala … Do Do 33 Virk … Do Do 34 Nawan Pind … Do Do 35 Nowshera Maja singh Do Do Muslims looted.Mixed population 36 Satkoha … Do Do 37 Chhina Retwala … Do Do 38 Dhariwal … Do Do 39 Mundi Karal … Do Do 40 Gil … Kahnuwan Do 41 Manj … Do Do 42 Kahnuwan … Do Do 43 Kotli Rawlan … Do Do 44 Langar Kot … Do Do 45 Bharo Herni … Kahnuwan Gurdaspur 46 Haweli Harni … Do Do 47 Dalla Goria … Do Do 48 Bakhtpura … Do Do 49 Dhindse … Do Do 50 Khujala … Sri Gobindpur Batala 51 Bhaini … Do Do 52 Balrampur … Do Do 53 Kaure … Do Do 54 Dharamkot Bagga Batala Do 55 Calcori (?) … Kahnuwan Gurdaspur 56 Rauwal … Do Do 57 Chak Yakub … Do Do 58 Jafarpur … Do Do 59 Bhatian … Do Do

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Figures and Tables 109 Serial No.Name of village Thana Tehsil Remarks 60 Gookhla … Do Do 61 Kohali … Batala Batala 62 Kiri (Kahnuwan) Kahnuwan Gurdaspur 63 Tughalwala … Sri Gobindpur Batala 64 Pasnawala … Dhariwal Gurdaspur 65 Budha Kot … Do Do 66 Panjgarain … Batala Batala 67 Moor … Sri Gobindpur Do 68 Waraya … Do Do 69 Mathola … Do Do 70 Harchowal … Do Do 71 Sultanpur China … Do Do 72 Sekhwan … Dhariwal Gurdaspur 73 Bhamri … Sri Gobindpur Batala 74 Ahmadabad … Dhariwal Gurdaspur 75 Wela Baju … Sri Gobindpur Batala 76 Wadala Granthian Batala Batala 77 Bhumbli … Kahnuwan Gurdaspur N.B.—Later figures much higher.

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 110 APPENDIX D List of Muslim villages (round-about Qadian) whose women were abducted by Sikhs.( Dated 5th September 1947 ) Serial No.Name of village Thana Tahsil Number of abducted women Remarks 1 Faizullah Chak … Dhariwal Gurdaspur 13 2 Danian Wali … Do Do 10 3 Bazid Chak … Do Do 4 4 Behbal Chak … Do Do 1 5 Zafarwal … Do Do 50 6 Fajupura … Do Do 20 7 Theh Ghulam Nabi Do Do 6 8 Khunda … Do Do 14 9 Ladu Bhanan … Sri Gobind- pur Batala 2 10 Pasnawala … Kahnuwan Gurdaspur 5 11 Padda … Sri Gobind- pur Batala 4 12 Balrampur … Do Do 3 13 Tughalwala … Do Do 2 14 Moor … Do Do 2 15 Noshera Maja Singh Dhariwal Gurdaspur 4 16 Ahmadabad … Do Do 2 17 Lodhipura … Do Do 5 147 N.B.—Later figures very much higher.

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Figures and Tables 111 APPENDIX E List of Muslim villages (round-about Qadian) where women and children were brutally assaulted and killed by Sikhs.( Dated 5th September 1947 ) Serial No.Name of village.Thana.Tehsil.Remarks.1 Winjwan … Batala Batala 2 Shahpur … Sri Gobindpur Do 3 Faizullah Chak … Dhariwal Gurdaspur 4 Lodipura … Do Do 5 Danianwali … Do Do 6 Bazid Chak … Do Do 7 Zafarwal … Do Do 8 Fajupura … Do Do 9 Khunda … Do Do 10 Nawan Pind … Do Do 11 Theh Ghulam Nabi Do Do 12 Virk … Do Do 13 Kotli Rawlan … Kahnuwan Do 14 Wela Baju … Sri Gobindpur Batala 15 Moor … Do Do 16 Ahmadabad … Dhariwal Gurdaspur

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Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad 112 APPENDIX F Muslim Refugees attacked and looted on the way to Qadian by Sikh Gangs blocking bridges, canal banks and roads.( Dated 5th September 1947 ) Serial No.Name of village where refugees were attached enroute to Qadian and looted.Thana Tehsil Remarks.1 Tatla … Kahnuwan Gurdaspur 2 Kallu Sohal … Do Do 3 Thakkar Sandhu … Do Do 4 Tughalwala … Do Do 5 Salahpur … Do Do 6 Withwan … Do Do 7 Harchowal … Do Do 8 Bhittaiwad … Do Do 9 Tibri … Gurdaspur Do 10 Dalla … Batala Batala 11 Dhannay Cheema Do Do

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Figures and Tables 113 APPENDIX G List of Muslim villages in which the attackers are alleged to have been particularly helped by the Police.( Dated 5th September 1947 ) Serial No.Name of village Thana Tehsil Remarks.1 Faizulla Chak … Dhariwal Gurdaspur Sikh Sub-Inspector reported to have himself led the Jatha.2 Fajupura … Do Do 3 Zafarwal … Do Do 4 Sathiali … Kahnuwan Do Do N.B.—Later figures of Police or Military aid are much higher.Indeed it subsequently became common practice if not actually the rule of the day.

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5 GLOSSARY Atta ( آٹا ) whole-wheat flour.Dal ( دَال ) a South Asian dish made from lentils or other pulses.Dhobi-Ghat ( گھاٹ دھویب ) an open-air laundry or washing-place.Goonda ( غُنڈا ) a violent, aggressive person who is hired to intimi- date or harm people.Gurdwara ( وارہ گُورد ) a building in which Sikhs worship.Gurkha ( گورکھا ) a member of a regiment in the British army established specifically for Nepalese recruits in the mid 19th century.Havildar ( حَوالدار ) a soldier or police officer corresponding to a sergeant.Hazrat ( حَرضت ) an honorific Arabic title.Holi ( ِ ل َو �ہ ) an annual Hindu festival held in Spring.Popularly known as the festival of colours.Idgah ( عِیداگہ ) a public space for offering the Eid prayers.Ilaqa ( عِالقہ ) region/territory/constituency/county.InshaAllah ( اِنْشائ ہللا ) an Arabic expression which means ‘God

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Glossary 116 willing’ or ‘if God wills’.Commonly used by Arabic speakers with reference to future events they hope will occur.Jatha ( جَھتا ) an armed body of Sikhs.Khalifa ( خَلِیفہ ) successor; ruler; leader; title used by the successors of the Holy Prophet sa and the founder of the Ahmadiyya Community.Khalifatul-Masih ( المسیح خَلیفة ) a title conferred on the spiritual successors of the Promised Messiah as.Kirpan ( کرپان ) a short sw ord or knife with a curved blade, worn (sometimes in miniature form) as one of the five distinguishing signs of the Sikh Khalsa.Langar Khana ( لَنگرخانہ ) commune kitchen.Madrasa ( مَدرسہ ) an educational institute; an Islamic seminary.Maharaja ( اراجا ھ َ م ) an Indian prince; a ruler of one of the native states of India.Mahatma ( مَھامتا ) a holy person or revered person.Mahdi ( دی ھ مَ ) literally meaning ‘the guided one’; in Islamic eschatology a messianic figure in Islam who Muslims believe will appear near the end of times to rid the world of injustice and restore true religious beliefs.Mandir ( مَندَ ر ) a Hindu temple.Maqbara ( مَقربہ ) tomb.Masjid ( مَسجد ) mosque.

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Glossary 117 Mazhabi Sikh ( سِکھ ہیب مَذ ) a Sikh convert usually from a lower social caste.Mehman Khana ( خانہ مان ھ مِ ) guest house.Mohalla ( مَلّہ ) an area of a town or village; a local neighbourhood.Muezzin ( ن مُؤَذ ) a person who makes the Islamic call to prayer.Nazir ( ںَظر ) An official or a director of an organisation or depart- ment.Nazir-e-Aala ( ٰ ایلع َظر ں ) the executive director of Sadar Anjuman Ahmadiyya, the central administrative body of the community.Nazir Amoor-e-Ama ( امورعامہ َظر ں ) the Ahmadiyya Muslim Com- munity’s director of general affairs.Nazir Amoor-e-Kharja ( َظر امور خارجہ ں ) the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community’s director of external affairs.Pandit ( پَنڈ ت ) a Hindu scholar learned in Sanskrit and Hindu philosophy.Qabristan ( قَربستان ) cemetery.Roti ( رویٹ ) a flat bread commonly eaten in the subcontinent which is part of the staple diet.Shahada ( شَھادة ) the Muslim statement of faith (‘there is no god but Allah, and Muhammad sa is the messenger of Allah’); one of the Five Pillars of Islam.Tehrik-e-Jadid ( جدید حتریک ) the central administrative body of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community for foreign missions.

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Glossary 118 Tehsil ( َصیل حت ) a local administrative division which exercises financial and administrative control over the towns and villages of its jurisdiction.Ummul Mu’minin ( اُمّ المؤمننی ) literally ‘the Mother of the Faithful’.A term of respect and reverence used for the wives of the Holy Prophet sa and by Ahmadis for the wife of the founder of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community.Zamindar ( زَمیندار ) a person who owns a large area of farm land.Ziafat ( ضِیافت ) hospitality.

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