Karachi Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) emir Monem Zafar Khan said on Tuesday that under Article 25-A of the Constitution of Pakistan, the state is bound to provide free and quality education to all citizens without discrimination.
Commenting on the state of education in the province, he said that approximately 7.8 million children between the ages of 5 and 16 are out of school in Sindh, which is deeply alarming. He said these figures clearly indicate that the public education system has not only failed, but that the rulers’ negligence and flawed policies have pushed the entire educational structure to the verge of collapse.
The JI leader said it is extremely disturbing that parents of children receiving free education are being summoned to schools and their videos and photographs are being recorded. This is a wholly unethical and illegal practice that severely threatens the dignity and self-respect of these parents and subjects them to humiliation and a sense of inferiority in society—something intolerable in any civilized society.
He emphasized that if the government is truly serious about promoting education, it should first improve the condition of public schools, address the shortage of teachers, fix infrastructure issues, and take practical steps to bring out-of-school children into the education system, rather than humiliating private institutions and parents.
The JI leader said private educational institutions are currently bearing more than 65 percent of the education burden in the province. These institutions are not only providing education to millions of children but, unlike the government, are also fully meeting their financial obligations.
Private schools pay rent, various taxes, and utility bills, including electricity, gas, and water, yet they are being harassed daily through new and unfair tactics. Expressing regret, he said making educational institutions directly accountable to bodies like anti-corruption departments, conducting raids, and creating an atmosphere of fear is unacceptable under any circumstances. Treating school administrators and teachers like criminals is a continuation of anti-education policies, he remarked.
He demanded that the government immediately halt retaliatory actions against private educational institutions, ensure the protection of parents’ dignity, and treat education as a practical priority rather than a political slogan.
