MANSEHRA: The Victim Support Service (VSS) unit of the police department has met the schoolgirls, who were assaulted and blackmailed by their teacher, and provided them with psychotherapy to bring them out of the trauma, they suffered after video clips of the act were uploaded on social media.

Talking to Dawn, Dr Lubna Safeer, a psychologist and head of VSS, said on the directives of district police officer Shafiullah Khan Gandapur, she along with policewomen held sessions with the victims in Lassan Nawab area the other day.

It is to mention here that the police arrested Mohammad Tufail, a teacher at a government high school in Chandor area, earlier this week for assaulting and filming clips of his students.

“The teacher first made video clips of the students at a function in the school, and later used the same to blackmail them, and kept assaulting the victims later,” Ms Safeer said.

Head of police’s Victim Support Service unit says they held sessions with girls

She said that the obscene video clips were also sent to the mobile phone of brothers of one of the girls, who approached the police. “The sick-minded man also threatened his students to fail them in the examinations if they did not oblige,” Dr Safeer said.

DPO Gandapur said he had constituted a team headed by an SSP, which led to the arrest of the schoolteacher under sections 376 and 506 of Pakistan Penal Code and Section 53 of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Child Protection and Welfare Act, 2010. “We have also seized dozens of video clips, computers and other gadgets from the accused,” he added.

He said that his department had also taken up the case with the secretary and director education department seeking their help in the investigation.

SOCIAL MEDIA USE: Federal Minister for Religious Affairs Sardar Mohammad Yusuf has urged youngsters to avoid engaging in religious debates on social media and in public life.

“Incidence of sacrilegious remarks on social media has increased in recent years and citizens regardless of their school of thought or religious affiliation should respect each other’s faith and refrain from debating controversial issues,” he said while talking to reporters here on Sunday.

The minister emphasised that the belief in the finality of Prophethood was a fundamental of Islam. “If a person does not believe that Muhammad (Peace Be upon Him) is the last and final messenger of Allah, he couldn’t claim to be a Muslim,” Mr Yusuf said.

He also urged parents to closely monitor their children’s use of social media. “The United Nations observes March 15 as the International Day to Combat Islamophobia. Every citizen, regardless of creed or faith, should pledge to spread the true teachings of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH),” he added.

The federal minister said the ministry of religious affairs had established a portal on its website where individuals could report sacrilegious visual or written content.

“We are ensuring that no one involved in uploading sacrilegious content on social media escapes justice. People should lodge their complaints through our ministry’s website,” Mr Yusuf said.

Published in Dawn, March 17th, 2025