Govt responsible for protecting educational institutions: Siraj

PESHAWAR: Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) head Sirajul Haq said on Tuesday that providing security to educational institutions was the duty of the government and it should recruit more cops for the purpose if there was any shortage of manpower.
“Putting the entire responsibility of securing schools on owners is not the right policy. Providing security to educational institutions is the duty of the government and it should perform it properly,” he said.
The JI chief was talking to reporters after visiting the Army Public School that reopened on Monday after the December 16 attack.
“If the police force is not sufficient to secure the schools, markets, sensitive buildings and public places, the government should recruit more policemen on emergency basis,” the JI chief said.
He was accompanied by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Senior Minister Inayatullah, Finance Minister Muzaffar Said, former ministers Kashif Azam, Hafiz Hashmat and other party leaders. He met several students and teachers on the occasion. The JI chief lauded the sacrifice of the children and teachers of the Army Public School and College in the December 16 attack. “The bravery of the students and teachers of the APS & C gave courage to the entire world to stand united for peace,” Sirajul Haq said.
At least 150 people, including over 134 students, were killed in the attack carried out by six or seven suicide bombers. The attackers blew themselves up to evade capture after the massacre. They killed everyone coming in their way in the auditorium, classrooms, corridors, lawns, library and offices in the worst ever terrorist attack in the country’s history.
Sirajul Haq said that December 16 attack added a black chapter to the history of the country. “The JI is standing with the entire nation against terrorism. The students are our future and the attackers tried to snatch our bright future from us on December 16,” added the JI head.
He said the JI would strive to make Pakistan a prosperous country. Sirajul Haq along with the provincial ministers also visited the nearby Warsak Public School and attended a ceremony there.