Provisions of Quran Act to be enforced, LHC assured

LAHORE: The Lahore High Court was assured on Thursday that the provisions of the Punjab Compulsory Teaching of Holy Quran Act 2018 will be enforced in letter and spirit in all educational institutions from the next academic year.

The undertaking was given by Secretary of School Education Department Dr Sohail Shehzad before a two-judge bench seized with an appeal seeking a direction for the government to take all possible steps to enable the Muslims, individually and collectively to order their lives in accordance with the fundamental principles and concepts of Islam.

The secretary also told the court that a notification shall be issued that from the next academic year no private or public school shall prescribe or suggest any kind of book or reading material without getting its approval from the government.

Punjab Curriculum & Textbook Board (PCTB) Chairman ex-Lt-Gen Akram Khan also stated before the bench that steps shall be taken before the commencement of next academic year to ensure that every book in any school will not contain any offensive material about the teaching of Holy Quran & Sunnah, Islamic ideology and pious personalities.