Anti-Ahmadis allege that since a few Ahmadis died due to the plague, thus, the prophecy made by the Promised Messiah (AS) is false which proves he is a false prophet. This is yet again another lie made up by Anti-Ahmadis and in this article, we will prove it from the writings of the Promised Messiah (AS) himself.

Refutation

Promised Messiah (AS) never said that no Ahmadi will die from the plague. Here is the excerpt from Noah’s Ark where he mentions the possibility of a few Ahmadis dying from it but it would be a rare instance.

In addition to this, God Almighty has emphatically declared that He will deliver from the affliction of the plague those sincere inhabitants of my home who are not arrogant before Him and His Appointed One. In relative comparison to others, God will grant this community a special favour. It is possible that there may be the odd case in my community due to a weakness of faith or a lack of action or death at its appointed time or on account of other causes which are known to God. However, rare instances as these cannot constitute the general rule. Whenever a comparison is made, the majority is given precedence.

[Noah’s Ark, pg. 6]

Similarly, in his book Defence Against the Plague, he mentions another of his revelation that says that Qadian will be saved from the destruction that other cities/villages in Punjab are facing.

This is a sign pointing to the fact that among the types of plague the most dreadful type is the one called ta‘un-e-jarif—meaning, ‘the sweeper’—from which people flee from place to place and die like dogs. The situation is beyond the limits of human tolerance. Thus, this divine revelation contains the promise that this condition will never affect Qadian.

Two points are gleaned from this revelation: (1) First, it would not matter if Qadian were to experience an incident, on rare occasions— which is within the bounds of human tolerance, does not wreak havoc, and does not induce a panic-driven exodus—because such an extremely rare occurrence amounts to nothing.

I claim with conviction that ta‘un-e-jarif, which empties and swallows villages entirely, shall never break out in Qadian. In contrast, however, in other cities and villages, where the oppressive and corrupt are, dreadful scenes are sure to manifest. In the entire world, it is Qadian alone for which this promise was made.

[Defence against plague, pg. 11]

He also says:

No one should labour under the illusion that if a rare death occurs on account of the plague within my community, this would vitiate the greatness and stature of this sign.

[Noah’s Ark, pg. 8]

Was Qadian actually safe?

What was the reality of this prophecy? Promised Messiah (AS) mentions it that even though the plague has destroyed cities and villages in Punjab, Qadian remains safe and healthy.

Now, observe how, over the past three years, both parts [of the prophecy] continue to be fulfilled. On one hand, the plague has spread throughout the Punjab, and on the other hand, although the plague has been rampant within two miles on all four sides of Qadian, the town itself remains free from it. In fact, even plague-stricken people from outside of Qadian who have come here have been cured. What greater proof can there be than the fact that those statements which were made four years ago have been fulfilled.

[Defence against plague, pg. 11]

Challenge of Promised Messiah (AS)

For those who would still deny this sign from God, Promised Messiah (AS) made it easy for others to accept it. He challenged everyone, regardless of what faith they belonged to, to come and make the same claim about their city/village as he has done about Plague.

Now, should anyone deny this Messenger of God Almighty and this sign, and if anyone believes that only superficial observances of prayer and supplication, or worship of the Messiah, or blessings of the cow, or belief in the Vedas—despite opposition, enmity, and disobedience towards this Messenger—will quell the plague, then such an opinion, unless supported by evidence, is not worthy of acceptance. Hence, a truly excellent opportunity now presents itself to any individual from among all these sects who wishes to furnish proof in support of the truthfulness of their respective faith.

Now if the Aryah people consider the Vedas to be true, they should prophesy that their Parmeshwar [God] will protect Benares from the plague, for it is the true seat of Vedic learning.

Similarly, the people of Sanatan Dharam they could foretell that Amritsar would be saved because of the blessings of the cow.

Similarly, Christians should prophesy that the plague will not afflict Calcutta because the great bishop of British India resides there.

In the same way, Miań Shams-ud-Din and members of his Anjuman Himayat-e-Islam should make a prophecy about Lahore, that it shall remain protected against the plague. Moreover, since Wahhabism prevails in Delhi, it would be appropriate for Nadhir Husain and Muhammad Husain to make a prophecy that Delhi shall remain protected from the plague.

[Defence against plague, pg. 19]

This challenge was the perfect opportunity to prove Promised Messiah (AS) as the false prophet but none dared to accept it.

So, in this way, the whole of the Punjab will be delivered from this fatal disease. And the government too will be absolved of its responsibility at no cost. But should they fail to do so, it will perforce be determined that the true God is He who has raised His Messenger in Qadian.

[Defence against plague, pg. 19]

Conclusion

In conclusion, not only do the Anti-Ahmadis lie about the claim of the Promised Messiah (AS), but they also hide the reality. They don’t show you how many people converted due to the sign of the Plague and the silence of Anti-Ahmadis when the challenge was presented to them. None of them came forward to do the same prophecy for their respective city or village. May Allah guide them to Islam.

One of the key points of the plague prophecy made by the Promised Messiah (AS) was that Punjab will specifically suffer more than the other parts of the world.

Today, Sunday, February 6, 1898, I saw in a dream that God’s angels were planting black trees in different parts of the Punjab. Those trees were very ugly, black in colour, terrifying and of small size. I asked some of those who were planting them: ‘What kind of trees are these?’ They answered: ‘These are trees of the plague which is about to spread in the country.’ It remained unclear to me whether it was said that the plague would spread during the coming winter or the winter after, but it was a terrible sign which I saw.”

[Tadhkirah, pg 407-408]

In this article, we will give proof of the high mortality rate in Punjab compared to the rest of India.

Mortality in Punjab

This quote is taken from the Review of Religions magazine, which quotes the statistics from its time. The key point to note is that 40% of the total deaths in India by March 1907 are just in Punjab.

Last year it was generally thought that the plague was about to leave the country. But it has now set in with an increased vehemence and all hopes of its abatement are for the present over. In the month of January there were between sixty-four and sixty-five thousand deaths reported from plague in the whole of India. But within the four weeks from 2nd February to 2nd March, the number of deaths from plague has increased to 101,068. The principal mortality is in the Punjab which shows 39,517 deaths in the month of February or nearly two-fifths of the entire plague mortality of India.

[Review of Religion, March 1907]

Plague Mortality in the Punjab

This is another reference but from May of the same year (2 months after the above). It mentions that ~66% of the total deaths in India due to the plague are happening in Punjab.

Plague mortality in Punjab is beating all records. Within eight weeks, from the 2nd March to 27th April, there have been more than a quarter of a million deaths from the pestilence. The plague mortality of the province has risen from 14,854 in the first week of March to 54,204 in the last week of April, and more than two-thirds of the total number of plague deaths in India are now contributed by the land of the five rivers…

Thus while the total plague mortality of India for the eight weeks ending with the 27th April is 489,860 or nearly milf a million, the Punjab with less than an eleventh of the total population of the country is responsible for 260,946 or more than half the plague deaths. These figures are indeed apalling but the destruction which is being wrought in particular towns and villages is quite indescribable. Many of the villages in which the plague has made its appearance have lost more than a fifth of their population, while many have Iost one-third or even one-half, and instances are not wanting in which not more than two or three souls have been left in a village. The scene of devastation which the Punjab presents today is one of the most apalling scenes that history can present.

[Review of Religion, May 1907]

The same article continues to quote the actual words of the prophecy and mentions how the people laughed and mocked the Promised Messiah (AS) for publishing the revelation. 9 years down the line and it is a completely different picture. Village after village has been left in ruins. Some even have only a few souls alive in them.

Conclusion

Thus, this prophecy cannot be a product of a human mind as it was specific enough that no one could have predicted it almost a decade ago. The only logical conclusion is to accept it as knowledge from the Knower of the Unseen.