The Qadian Diary — Page 16
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