SWAT: A young student, Farhan, was allegedly beaten to death by his madrassah teachers on Monday evening in Swat’s Chaliyar village, police confirmed.
The incident, which has shocked the local community, was reportedly carried out in front of fellow students, raising serious concerns about the use of corporal punishment in religious institutions.
According to police spokesperson Moin Fayaz, Farhan, who had been absent from school for a few days, returned to the madrassah and was allegedly attacked by three teachers. One of Farhan’s classmates, who requested anonymity, described the brutal scene.
“Our teachers started hitting him hard. Later, they dragged him into a side room and kept beating him. I was called in to bring water. He drank a little, then put his head in my lap — and just went silent,” the classmate recalled.
Despite efforts to rush Farhan to the hospital, doctors declared him dead upon arrival. The police registered an FIR under Section 302 (premeditated murder) and Section 34 (common intention) of the Pakistan Penal Code, along with Section 37 (punishment for violence) of the Child Protection Act.
One suspect has been arrested, and the police are actively searching for the other two teachers involved in the incident.
Farhan’s uncle, Saddar Ayaz, who had dropped the victim off at the madressah earlier that day, shared his distress over the incident. “He was afraid to return to the madressah. I took him myself and handed him over to the teachers. Later, one teacher called me and said my nephew had fallen in the toilet and died,” Ayaz explained.
The tragic incident has prompted widespread outrage, with human rights groups and local residents demanding immediate action against the perpetrators. “Farhan could have been any of our children,” said Haider Ali, a local elder. “He went to study. He never came back.”
This incident highlights the ongoing issue of corporal punishment in Pakistani schools, despite the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Child Protection and Welfare Act of 2010, which prohibits such actions. The law mandates that violators face up to six months in prison or a fine of Rs50,000.
However, a recent report by the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Child Protection and Welfare Commission (KPCPWC) revealed 33 cases of abuse, including 14 instances of corporal punishment, across the province.
Earlier this year, in April, a teacher in Kasur was arrested for beating a student with a hot iron for failing to memorize a lesson, further underscoring the prevalence of such violence in schools and madressahs.
Authorities are under increasing pressure to ensure stricter enforcement of child protection laws and prevent further violence in educational institutions.