Sri Lanka’s Parliament and Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa on Saturday condemned the brutal lynching of a Sri Lankan nationwide in Pakistan and hoped that Prime Minister Imran Khan will maintain his dedication to convey all these concerned to justice and make sure the security of the remainder of the island nation’s expat employees.
In a grisly incident on Friday, Priyantha Kumara Diyawadana, who was in his 40s, was lynched and his physique burnt by indignant supporters of a hardline Islamist get together which attacked a garment manufacturing unit in Pakistan’s Punjab province over blasphemy allegations.
Diyawadana, from Sri Lanka’s Kandy, was working as the final supervisor of the garment manufacturing unit in Sialkot district, some 100 kms from Lahore.
The Sri Lankan authorities and the Opposition had been united in urging the Sri Lankan authorities to have talks with Islamabad to make sure the security of the remainder of the Sri Lankan employees in Pakistan.
Best needs to the management and other people of #UnitedArabEmirates as they rejoice their Golden Jubilee Anniversary of their National Day. May you go from power to power as a nation and will the bilateral relationship between each our nations flourish. @mofa_uae
— Mahinda Rajapaksa (@PresRajapaksa) December 2, 2021
Taking to Twitter, Prime Minister Rajapaksa mentioned: “Shocking to see the brutal and fatal attack on Priyantha Diyawadana by extremist mobs in #Pakistan. My heart goes out to his wife and family. #SriLanka and her people are confident that PM @ImranKhanPTI will keep to his commitment to bring all those involved to justice”.
Khan mentioned in a tweet: “The horrific vigilante attack on a factory in Sialkot & the burning alive of a Sri Lankan manager is a day of shame for Pakistan. I am overseeing the investigations & let there be no mistake, all those responsible will be punished with full severity of the law. Arrests are in progress.” Pakistan President Arif Alvi tweeted: “The Sialkot incident is definitely very sad & shameful, and not religious in any way whatsoever. Islam is a religion that established cannons of deliberative justice rather than mob lynchings.” “We are glad that the Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan had very strongly condemned this brutal act,” Sri Lankan training minister Dinesh Gunawardena instructed Parliament.
The horrific vigilante assault on manufacturing unit in Sialkot & the burning alive of Sri Lankan supervisor is a day of disgrace for Pakistan. I’m overseeing the investigations & let there be no mistake all these accountable shall be punished with full severity of the regulation. Arrests are in progress
— Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) December 3, 2021
Diywadana had graduated from the University of Peradeniya in Kandy. He got here from a poor background, Parliament was instructed.
He was murdered by the supporters of the Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP), a hardline Islamist get together, which was beforehand banned.
“Mr Kumara allegedly tore a poster of the hardline TLP in which Quranic verses were inscribed and threw it in the dustbin. The poster of the Islamist party was pasted on the wall adjoining the office of Kumara. A couple of factory workers saw him removing the poster and spread the word in the factory,” in response to a police official in Pakistan’s Punjab province.
Hundreds of males, enraged over the “blasphemy” incident, began gathering exterior the manufacturing unit from adjoining areas. Most of them had been activists and supporters of the TLP.
“The mob dragged the suspect (the Sri Lankan national) from the factory and severely tortured him. After he succumbed to his wounds, the mob burnt his body before police reached there,” the official mentioned.
Several movies had been circulated on social media displaying a whole lot of males gathered on the web site surrounding the physique of the Sri Lankan nationwide. They had been chanting slogans of the TLP.
The Pakistan authorities led by Prime Minister Khan had lately lifted a ban on the TLP after signing a secret settlement with it after which its chief Saad Rizvi and over 1,500 activists accused of terrorism had been launched from jail.
The TLP in return had ended its week-long sit-in in Punjab after withdrawing its demand of expelling the French ambassador on the problem of blasphemous cartoons in France.
Late on Friday night, Punjab Police mentioned they’ve arrested 100 suspects, after figuring out them by way of video footage.
“We have arrested 100 suspects allegedly involved in the lynching of the Sri Lankan national under terrorism and other charges,” Inspector General Police (Punjab) Rao Sardar Ali Khan mentioned in a press release.
“More arrests are being made and those involved in this gory incident will not be spared,” he mentioned.
Condemning the incident, world human rights watchdog Amnesty International demanded an neutral investigation.
“PAKISTAN: Amnesty International is deeply alarmed by the disturbing lynching and killing of a Sri Lankan manufacturing unit supervisor in Sialkot, allegedly resulting from a blasphemy accusation. Authorities should instantly conduct an impartial, neutral and immediate investigation and maintain the perpetrators accountable.
“Today’s event underscores the urgency with which an environment that enables abuse and puts lives at risk must be rectified,” it mentioned in a collection of tweets.
Pakistan has extraordinarily strict legal guidelines in opposition to defaming Islam, together with the loss of life penalty, and rights campaigners say they’re usually used to settle private disputes within the Muslim-majority nation.
A US authorities advisory panel report says Pakistan used blasphemy legal guidelines greater than some other nation on the earth.
Mere allegations of blasphemy have triggered violence in opposition to minorities like Christians.
Several individuals accused of committing blasphemy have been lynched in recent times.