Banadi was a 13-year-old girl, my classmate as well as a good friend of mine. She was one of the high achievers in our class who engaged in fruitful discussions and confidently asked questions.

One pleasant morning in January, I cheerfully made my way to school, but after my arrival there, I felt as if the earth had disappeared beneath my feet. I saw Banadi standing by a pillar, engrossed in a deep thought — in fact, I had never ever seen her in such a sad mood before.

Seeing her depressed, I couldn’t help but rush to her and ask with concern, “Why are you standing here and why do you look so sad?”

“Zeeshan, I love studies, but from now on my father won’t permit me to continue my studies. My father says that it is their custom not to let girls go out of the house as it can bring embarrassment to the family.

“There are several girls in our neighbourhood who are not allowed to get education. Seeing them, I often wondered how I could use my education for the betterment of my community but now I see no way of doing this,” she explained sadly.

“Why does your father want you to stop coming to school despite knowing that you are a champion in our school?” I asked her.

“My sin is that I am girl. If only I were a boy. I want to act as a role model for my community, I want to be a teacher to empower the next generation of girls but, unfortunately, I find barriers on the road to my dreams,” Banadi responded.

Just then the bell rang and everyone went to their classes as per schedule. But this conversation had put me in deep thoughts and I couldn’t completely concentrate on my classes.

When I returned home from school, I tossed my school backpack in a corner, slammed the door and plopped into a chair to think of what could I do for my friend. After giving it a lot of thought, I felt I needed to inform my father about this, perhaps he could come up with a solution.

“Daddy! I got to say something to you!”

“Yes, beta. What is it?” father replied.

“Dad! You know about my friend, Banadi. She has God-gifted intelligence and she is appreciated in every subject by all the teachers. Unluckily, her father is stopping her from coming to school. Dad! What has gone wrong with our society? Why are girls not allowed to get education?” I asked my father.

“Zeeshan! Women are born to rule the sky like the birds, but they are kept in captivity. In our backward society when daughters are born, their wings are clipped off, making them unable to fly. I fail to understand why only girls are underestimated and discriminated against, even if they can prove their potential? Some families believe that early marriage will lead to a good life for their girls. But they never think of education as a good life for their girls,” he said, saddened like me. He advised me to be a great supporter of girls’ education in future.

That night I couldn’t sleep. We are far behind other nations in terms of development. Why can’t we give equal rights to our girls? Don’t they have a right to all the things that men do? They are born like eagles to fly and rule the sky, not machines to work in the house. If we fail to educate our girls, then we will lose countless treasures that were never discovered.

Before I fell asleep, I decided to talk to my friends and teachers the next day as ask them to convince Banadi’s father to let her complete her education. I had to do something.

Published in Dawn, Young World, December 1st, 2017