A first information report (FIR) was registered against a prayer leader on Tuesday for allegedly sexually assaulting a 12-year-old boy inside a mosque in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Charsadda district, police said.

According to the FIR, a copy of which is available with Dawn.com, the complainant (victim) told the police that he was sexually assaulted by his teacher six days ago.

“I had not told anyone in my family because I was afraid of their reaction. But I gathered the courage and informed my father about the entire ordeal. I want justice for myself and demand police action against the suspect, who used to molest students in the mosque,” the FIR read.

Charsadda police have lodged the FIR under sections 377-B (punishment for sexual abuse) of Pakistan Penal Code and 53 (sexual abuse) of Child Protection Act.

Speaking to Dawn.com, Charsadda District Police Officer Suleman Zafar confirmed the incident, saying “I have taken notice of the incident and have instructed the respective area sub-divisional police officer to take prompt action.”

The FIR was filed on the victim’s complaint within the limits of the Nasta police station.

“Further interrogation is underway but the preliminary report says that the boy was a student of religious studies,” DPO Zafar said. “The alleged suspect is a resident of Mohmand district but was living in Charsadda.”

He said the suspect, who is at large, would be arrested very soon and justice would be ensured for the victim’s family at all costs, adding that the elements involved in such heinous crimes would not be forgiven under any circumstances.

As many as 3,364 child abuse cases were reported from all four provinces, Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT), Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), and Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) in the year 2024, according to the civil society report ‘Cruel Numbers 2024’ by Sahil that was prepared based on data collected from 81 national and regional newspapers across the country.

These included reported cases of child sexual abuse, abduction, missing children, and child marriages. It shows that nine children were abused per day during the year. A gender-divide analysis indicates that out of the total reported cases, 1,791 (53 per cent) victims were girls and 1,573 (47pc) boys.

Earlier today, the National Cyber Crimes Investigation Agency (NCCIA) exposed a child sexual exploitation gang operating in Punjab’s Muzaffargarh district, leading to the arrest of two suspects and the recovery of ten children.

Minister of State for Interior Talal Chaudhry detailed that 178 first information reports have been lodged against child exploitation, 198 suspects have been arrested, and fourteen were jailed between four to ten years.