Daily Times

Former interior minister Senator Rehman Malik has faced the ire on social media after he sought details of deceased child Iqbal Masih who was killed decades ago.

Senator Rehman Malik asked for the contact details of the deceased activist while responding to a tweet paying tribute on his death anniversary.

“Remembering Iqbal Masih, a little hero & an activist from a small town in Pakistan, who courageously fought against child labour. After escaping slavery at 10, he attended BLLF school & completed 4 yr education in 2 yrs & also saved 3000 children,” said a tweet.

In response to the tweet, the PPP leader questioned, “can anybody provide his [Iqbal Masih] contact details.” The user then told the former interior minister that Iqbal was assassinated in 1995 by ‘carpet mafia’.

Iqbal’s father sold him, when he was only 4 years old, to a Pakistani carpet Factory in Punjab in order to get his family a loan to pay for the wedding of Iqbal’s oldest brother. Iqbal at the age of 10 obtained a copy of Bonded Labour Liberation Front (BLLF)’s pamphlet, which he used to escape from the factory. Since then, he became an active campaigner against child slavery. On 16 April 1995, at the age of 12, he was shot dead by the carpet mafia while cycling with his cousin in a village field.