Claim: Chief Minister of Punjab Maryam Nawaz, had the historic Lal Masjid in Pasrur demolished.
Fact: The extended portion of the historic Lal Masjid in Pasrur was demolished by the mosque’s administration voluntarily. While Chief Minister of Punjab Maryam Nawaz has ordered an anti-encroachment drive in the province, she did not particularly order the demolition of the Lal Masjid in Pasrur.
A video (archive) circulating on social media, showing a mosque being demolished, contains text in Urdu that reads, “پسرور میں مریم نواز نے قدیم دینی تعلیمی درسگاه لال مسجد کو گرا دیا۔
Yeh kia ho rha hai as mulk me”
[Translation: Maryam Nawaz demolished the ancient religious educational institution, Lal Masjid, in Pasrur.
What is happening in this country.]
The caption implies that the Chief Minister directly ordered the demolition of the mosque.
Anti-encroachment drive
According to Dawn, the Chief Minister of Punjab ordered an operation against the illegal encroachments in Punjab. As of 24 January, the operation removed 1,152 structures and 32,346 temporary encroachments across Sambrial, Daska, Pasrur, and Sialkot. The report further stated that special teams, including municipal, revenue, and police officials, carried out the crackdown in key markets, issuing warnings beforehand. So far, 545 shopkeepers have been arrested for illegal encroachments disrupting traffic, and the operation will continue under the district administration’s supervision.
Fact or Fiction?
While it is true that Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz has ordered an operation against illegal encroachments in Punjab, the mosque in Pasrur was brought down voluntarily and not upon any specific order from Nawaz herself. Soch Fact Check contacted the Municipal Committee in Pasrur, which informed us that the mosque administration voluntarily demolished the extended portion of the mosque as part of the ongoing anti-encroachment campaign.
A reverse-image search led us to a post (archive) in the Facebook group City Pasrur, which echoed the information given to us by the Pasrur Municipal Committee. The post included images of Lal Masjid with the caption:
“پسرور شہر میں تجاوزات کے خلاف مہم جاری، شہریوں نے اپنی مدد آپ کے تحت تجاوزات ہٹانی شروع کر دیں۔ تاریخی لال مسجد کے سڑک پر بڑھے ہوٸے حصے کو ازخود مسمار کرنا شروع کر دیا۔ صوباٸی پارلیمانی سیکرٹری رانا محمد فیاض، کوارڈینیٹر ٹو علی زاہد ایم این اے، اے سی پسرور قمر محمود منج، تحصیلدار عاطف گوندل اور سی او بلدیہ محمد یوسف نے شہریوں کے ساتھ مذاکرات کے بعد عابد مجید روڈ کی چوڑاٸی مبینہ طور پر 55 فٹ اور چوک امید پورہ سے چوک گورنمنٹ عاٸشہ گرلز ہاٸی سکول پسرور تک 44 فٹ قرار دی ہے۔ اے سی پسرور قمر محمود منج نے لال مسجد پسرور کے خطیب مولانا خلیق خان پسروری اور مسجد انتظامیہ کو انتہاٸی ذمہ داری کے ساتھ رضاکارانہ طور پر مسجد کا سڑک پر بڑھا ہوا حصہ مسمار کرنے پر انہیں خراج تحسین پیش کیا ہے۔”
[Translation: The anti-encroachment campaign continues in Pasrur city, and citizens have started removing encroachments on their own. The extended portion of the historic Lal Masjid on the road is being voluntarily demolished. Provincial Parliamentary Secretary Rana Muhammad Fayaz, Coordinator to MNA Ali Zahid, AC Pasrur Qamar Mehmood Manj, Tehsildar Atif Gondal, and Municipal Committee CO Muhammad Yousuf, after negotiations with the citizens, have reportedly designated the width of Abid Majeed Road as 55 feet and the stretch from Chowk Umeedpura to Chowk Government Ayesha Girls High School Pasrur as 44 feet. AC Pasrur Qamar Mehmood Manj has praised Lal Masjid Pasrur’s cleric, Maulana Khaliq Khan Pasruri, and the mosque administration for responsibly and voluntarily demolishing the extended portion of the mosque on the road.]
Facebook user Ibneadam Pasruri also shared a video stating the same. He reiterated that local authorities in Pasrur consulted among themselves and, after discussions with the public, agreed that citizens would begin removing encroachments voluntarily. As a result, with the support of the municipal committee and police, various structures, including the extended portion of Lal Masjid, were demolished, Pasruri said.
Virality
The claim gained significant traction on Facebook receiving over 139,000 likes and 27,000 shares. It was shared here, here, and here. Archived here, here, and here.
On X, it was shared here (archive).
It was shared here on Instagram.
Conclusion: The extended portion of the historic Lal Masjid in Pasrur was demolished by the mosque’s administration voluntarily, as part of a larger anti-encroachment drive within Punjab. While Maryam Nawaz ordered the anti-encroachment operation across the province, she did not particularly have the Lal Masjid in Pasrur demolished.
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Background image in cover photo: Saukanwind Voice
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