It is in the public's interest to ensure the founders and principals of private religious schools are made accountable for any failures to provide safety for children under their charge, said G25 today.

In a statement, the group of eminent Malays, the religious authorities should not resist an open inquiry into the manner in which such schools are run, and instead, support the setting up of the special committee proposed by Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi to look into the fire incident at the Darul Quran Ittifaqiyah tahfiz school in Jalan Keramat Hujung, Kuala Lumpur, on Thursday, which killed 23 people.

Zahid had on Thursday said he would personally lead a special committee to probe the early morning fire which broke out at the school, killing 21 students and two wardens...