Spiritual guide turns monster

• 10-year-old boy raped by madrassa cleric in Sandha
• Accused Abdul Ghaffar says he was not in right frame of mind when sexually assaulting student
• Boy’s family, residents demand death for child molester

With the recent series of child rape incidents hitting the city here comes the last straw-child molestation.

Those working in the noble profession of teaching the Holy Quran to the young seem to be fulfilling their carnal desires by forcing children into doing obscene sexual acts with them.

One such incident was reported from the provincial metropolis on Saturday, Pakistan Today has learnt.

Zeeshan, 10, a resident of Sandha’s Shibli Town area and a student of the Quran at a nearby madrassa went to his teacher Abdul Ghaffar’s house. Ghaffar lured Zeeshan into a room and then sexually assaulted him. The cleric fled, leaving the minor child unconscious.

Upon learning, the boy’s father, Saleem along with area residents went to the Sandha Police Station and demanded immediate arrest of the culprit.

Station House Officer (SHO) Inspector Arshad Latif arrested Ghaffar and handed him over to investigation police.

A large number of residents gathered outside the police station to beat the culprit. One of the residents, Yousaf said that we live in times where even religious teachers cannot be trusted. “For all I know such people would make their own children a victim let alone other people’s children. The government should publicly hang these criminals for committing such crimes,” he said.

Another resident, Anwar Saeed said, “Such people are a stain on the religious community who work under the banner of a noble profession to satisfy their sexual desire, victimising innocent children.” He added that the government should publicly hang these criminals to serve as a lesson for others.

Investigation In-charge Mirza Masood said that during interrogation the culprit confessed to his crime and repeatedly asked for forgiveness saying he was not in his right frame of mind at the time.

However, Masood said that medical and DNA reports are still awaited after which the accused will be presented in court for judicial remand.