Daily Times

Sir: A violent cleric has beaten a seminary student to death in Karachi. At a time when the nation is already reeling from a spate of violent sexual crimes against children, sadistic corporal punishment has also raised its ugly head.

According to the laws of the Sindh province, all forms of corporal punishment are prohibited. It is mandatory that the Sindh government, police and judiciary come down with full force on this so called cleric. A precedent must be set. There is a culture of abuse in Pakistan’s madaris which must be addressed. According to a report by Associated Press, sexual abuse is also rampant in our madaris.

These clerics cannot keep continuing to get away with assaulting children. According to reports in the newspapers, the cleric beat the young boy to death with a blunt object. Can such a violent assault be considered a teaching tool by any sane person?

ATIF KHAWAR

Karachi

Published in Daily Times, January 24^th 2018.