NCRC takes notice of schoolgirl torture incident

LAHORE: The National Commission on Rights of the Child (NCRC) took cognizance of torture of schoolgirl in a private school in Lahore pursuant to S.15 of NCRC Act 2017.

The NCRC condemned the incident and said that the reported incident is violative of the United Nations Convention on the rights of the Child, the Constitution of Islamic Republic of Pakistan, Pakistan Penal Code and provincial laws and policies of Punjab.

School Education Department (SED) Punjab has constituted a committee to examine all matters of private education including legal frame-work, costs, teachers, issues, fees, child-security & safety. NCRC has directed the Punjab secretary, School Education Department to submit an inquiry report on the incident within seven seven days. “Under the Punjab Free and Compulsory Education Act 2014, the SED has to devise a mechanism in schools to prevent these incidents and ensure protection of children from abuse, exploitation and torture,” a statement issued by the chairperson NCRC Afshan Tehseen said on Monday.

The NCRC has received 49pc of complaints from Punjab in last three years. It also directed DCO Lahore and District Education Officer Lahore to share progress on status of provincial child protection policy and mechanism to prevent such incidents including the formation of child protection committees in the private schools and complaint handling mechanism.