On Thursday (June 17), the police registered a case against a 70-year-old Islamic cleric for sexually assaulting one of his madrassa students in Lahore in Pakistan.
As per reports, the accused has been identified as Mufti Azizur Rehman. The victim, a minor boy, had taken admission to the Jamia Manzoorul Islamia madrassa in the year 2013. Rehman had accused the boy of ‘cheating’ by allowing a proxy to write exams on his behest. “Over this, I was also banned from giving exams at the Wafaqul Madaris for three years,” the victim narrated.
Despite multiple pleas, the Islamic cleric was firm in his resolute. One day, Rehman told the minor boy that he could do something about the matter only if the victim made him happy ‘sexually.’ Left with no choice, the victim gave into the harrowing sexual abuse. “Mufti Rehman claimed that the ban would be removed and that he would also pass me in the exams. But despite a passage of three years, during which I was assaulted every Friday, he did nothing and started to blackmail me more,” the boy narrated.
The victim had complained to the madrassa administration about the matter. In a disturbing video clip that has surfaced on social media, the Islamic cleric was seen sexually abusing a minor. However, they did not take action and instead accused him of defaming an ‘elder and a pious man’. The boy then started recording videos of abuse and it was only then that the Jamia Manzoorul Islamia madrassa took action against Rehman on June 3. However, since the Islamic cleric was removed, the boy has been at the receiving end of death threats.
FIR registered by Lahore police against accused
The North Cantt police in Lahore has now registered a case against Mufti Rehman under Pakistan Penal Code (PPC) Sections 377 (unnatural offences) and 506 (punishment for criminal intimidation). The accused Islamic cleric is reportedly the vice-ameer of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI). The madrassa had removed Rehman on June 3 after several people from the neighborhood showed up at the Islamic institution with the video of the sexual assault. ”My attacker’s sons have threatened to kill me for exposing him [Mufti Aziz]. It is better I die,” the victim said in a video message.
Islamic cleric removed from madrassa where he preyed on the victim
In a letter by Jamia Manzoorul Islamia, it said, “A video was produced of you in which you are molesting a student. After consolation the Jamia administration based on the video advised him and his son to leave the campus”. Sara Ahmed, Punjab Child Protection and Welfare Bureau, took cognisance of the matter and contacted the victim and his family. While assuring the victim of complete legal cooperation, Ahmed termed the incident as ‘extremely saddening.’
Sexual abuser cleric cries foul, claimed he was drugged
Following his expulsion from the madrassa, the accused Mufti Rehman has posted a 10-minute long video in his defence. He claimed, “This video is fake as you can’t even see me move in it. Where is my accuser? It has been two weeks since he was last seen…I was clearly drugged by this boy.”
While placing his hand on the Quran, he also dubbed it as a conspiracy to get him expelled from Jamia Manzoorul Islamia. As proof, he claimed that he would not have allowed the victim to record the video had he not been drugged.
