NAROWAL: A landlord tortured a six-year-old child to death for refusing to work at village Depoke on the outskirts of Zafarwal on Friday.

Chaudhry Muhammad Sarwar severely tortured Noman Hassan, son of a worker, so much that the child died before reaching the Tehsil Headquarters Hospital Zafarwal.

A video clip that went viral on social media and was reported in the electronic media shows Sarwar torturing the child, beating him on the back and other parts of the body with an iron rod.

The child kept crying and screaming but the suspect continued with his crime.

Local labourers watched the landlord torturing the minor in horror but no one dared stop him and save the crying child.

Raees Alam, the father of Noman, said that he and his wife, Tazeem Bibi, started living and working with Chaudhry Sarwar after having a quarrel with his own family. Raees Alam said that the boy had refused to work and Sarwar tortured him to death.

According to locals, Sarwar, his wife and sons had previously tortured children and workers.

Narowal District Police Officer Syed Ali Akbar took notice of the incident after the news went viral and ordered action against the suspect.

Zafarwal police registered a case against Sarwar, his wife Gulshan Bibi and his sons Muhammad Azam, Muhammad Mansoor and Muhammad Nadeem on charge of murder. No arrest has been made in the case so far.

Published in Dawn, February 13th, 2021