1953 Lahore riots

The 1953 Lahore riots were a series of violent riots against the Ahmadiyya movement, a faith marginalized in Pakistan, mainly in the city of Lahore, as well as the rest of Punjab, which were eventually quelled by the Pakistan Army who declared two months of martial law. The demonstrations began in February 1953, soon escalating into citywide incidents, including looting, arson and the murder of somewhere between 200 and 2000 people. Thousands more were left displaced. According to the official inquiry conducted by the Punjab Government, the actual number killed in these riots was around 20. The first page of the inquiry says that before the declaration of martial law, the police killed two people on the night of 4th March and ten the 5th. 66 people were admitted to Lahore hospitals with gunshot wounds. The military attempting to quell the disturbances in Lahore admitted to killing 11 and wounding 49. There were additional casualties in other towns. Seeing that police were unable to contain the increasingly widespread unrest, Governor-General Malik Ghulam Muhammad handed over the administration of the city to the army under Major General Azam Khan, imposing martial law on 6 March.