Publication

This report examines the role religious schools in Pakistan play five years after President Pervez Musharraf promised a reform of the sector. It argues that deplorable public schools, the sectarian tilt of state institutions, the marginalization of moderate voices and the military government’s reliance on religious parties for political survival have led to rapid growth of madrassas over the past two decades. The report further states that the schools are not surveilled and have trained and dispatched jihadi fighters to Afghanistan and Indian-administered Kashmir, contributing to a climate of lawlessness and sectarianism.