They published an online paper to entice masses to violence. They were spreading the message of hatred. They loathed harmony, tolerance and love.  It took more than eight years of active terrorism and 47 dead Pakistanis to awaken the authorities out of a deep slumber.

The masterminds who had soaked their fingers in the blood of Valentine’s Day defending Sabeen Mahmud and the slain members of Ismaili community were finally taken into custody more than a week ago.  This could have been just another gruesome case like the ones we have been accustomed to witnessing for more than a decade.  But there is something spine-chilling about these men.

Two of the main suspects are highly educated men from well reputed universities of Pakistan. They were not deprived. They were not raised in some far off rugged terrain, where they might have been ‘destined’ to being sucked into the world of militancy. They were from the biggest metropolitan city of Pakistan. They had led so called normal lives, earned one of the most desirable degrees and lived in regular households.  What does it all lead us to?

For years we have been telling ourselves, day in and day out, that if education is free for all, if it is easily accessible, it will relieve us from the nightmare of extremism and terrorism. Now we have to pause and think.

Was it just another myth that the vast majority of Pakistanis were banking on, that an educated generation is the only solution to these grave issues? We have to think, rethink and imagine the environment of these schools and universities that have produced such individuals.

The question would soon bring us back to the very basics of this argument: what are we teaching, who is the teacher and where is everything being taught? 

It is not enough to keep condemning such killings once the slain are buried six feet under, we have to prevent it and end it. This is another dimension the government might have been ignoring for some time, but it is high time we opened this front and eradicated the roots of this menace.

It is not enough to just open schools, colleges and universities, to approve a specific syllabus and to sanction grants for these institutions. What is needed right now is to absolutely change the way we operate in our educational institutions.  The ones teaching at these institutions and the seemingly harmless student bodies with dubious loyalties should also be discouraged at all levels.

What makes a regular teenager leave books aside, shun friends, and avoid socialization while mingling with only a certain group secretly engaged in brainwashing anyone they can lay their hands upon?  It has to be understood that these so called friendly groups are not patronized by the teachers themselves.  In case such associations are discovered they should be made public and under no circumstances should these shady individuals be allowed to teach at such institutions.

If the authorities believe that merely scrutinizing the curriculum will suffice, they should come out of their fantasies. There are numerous other factors working more stealthily and quietly in addition to the obvious syllabus.  Unfortunately these factors are more lethal in nature and far more damaging than we could ever think. And these suspects are a somber reminder of this very fact.

The government might be satisfied with the kind of efforts they are trying to put in at keeping a check on what is being taught at the institutions, but knowing where this knowledge is imparted and the source is equally important. This is the part that has been the subject of criminal negligence and needs to be tackled. 

The environment is dangerously fertile for the growth of mischievous groups and individuals using these institutions for the recruitment of resources to spread hatred. The qualified and educated individuals are a goldmine for them since they have better penetration in the society and are hard to spot. They are well integrated people who move around in a circle that is not deemed suspicious. Hence, they escape the watchful eyes. 

The only way to secure some sense of sanity is by purging our institutions not only of the misleading words and books but of the individuals as well who overtly or covertly show us their real, ugly and monstrous designs. Those who indulge in harnessing fanatic ideas and sow the seeds of intolerance in the society.  

These groups and individuals cannot be allowed to play with the impressionable minds of students. We cannot let their personal version of religion as a tool to fan differences in an already bias-ridden society.