KARACHI: A sessions court in Karachi handed double 15-year sentences to a cleric on Wednesday after finding him guilty of sexually abusing two of his students at a madressah in the city’s Landhi area.

Additional District and Sessions Judge Naseer Noor Khan announced the verdict against Qari Muhammad Anwar — whose sentences will run concurrently — in two cases of sexual abuse.

The court also penalised Anwar with a fine of Rs1 million in each case, and directed that half of the amount of the fine be paid to the boys or their parents as compensation.

According to state prosecutors Rehana Khan and Amjad, two separate first information reports were registered against the cleric, who is also a madressah teacher, in 2025.

The prosecutors said the first case was registered on the complaint of the parents of a 13-year-old boy after he told them that the cleric had sexually abused him and other students at the madressah.

The prosecutors added that the second case was registered after a 17-year-old boy saw reports on television of Anwar being accused in a case of sexual abuse and told his sister that the cleric had sexually assaulted him as well.

The prosecutors said the two boys had testified before the court that the cleric used to sexually abuse them inside a room at the madressah and had threatened to harm them if they told anyone about the offence he had been committing.

During the trial, the cleric denied the allegations and claimed that he had been falsely implicated at the behest of a non-governmental organisation (NGO). He also maintained that he did not have a class at the madressah when the offences were committed.

However, the court observed that he had refused to examine himself on oath.

The judge also made the observation that while claiming his innocence, the cleric had insisted that he had been implicated in the cases because he had refused to give money to “some NGO”.

The judge said that the cleric’s arguments did “not appeal to a prudent mind”, questioning why would an NGO blackmail a madressah teacher and demand money from him.

The court further questioned that upon the cleric’s refusal, how the NGO could have persuaded the parents of both boys to assist it in seeking revenge against the cleric and let their children face a “stigma” for life.

It also noted that of the two defence witnesses examined during the proceedings, one had admitted that he did not know all the facts.

The second witness, who was an examiner at the madressah, admitted that he had tried to persuade the parents of one of the boys to forgive the culprit, the court further noted.