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Lynching of Priyantha Kumara

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Lynching of Priyantha Kumara
DateDecember 3, 2021 (2021-12-03)
LocationWazirabad Road in Sialkot.
Charges131 arrested[1]

Priyantha Kumara Diyawadana was a 49 year old[2], Sri Lankan citizen lynched by a mob on December 3, 2021 in Sialkot, Pakistan[3] over allegations of blasphemy.[4] Supporters of the radical Islamist party Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) were believed to be responsible for the death of Priyantha Kumara, while the TLP officially distanced itself from the incident.[5]

Kumara, who was a Hindu by faith[6] and had lived and worked in Pakistan for eleven years,[7] was beaten, killed and later set on fire by a violent mob in Sialkot. He had been accused of blasphemy for removing a poster featuring religious content. It was later revealed that Kumara had removed the poster due to pending renovation work in the building, and was wrongly accused of blasphemy by workers of the factory.[8] Several videos started to circulate on social media where hundreds of men can be seen gathered at the site, chanting slogans of the TLP.[9]

Biography

Diyawadanage Don Nandasiri Priyantha Kumara[2] was a resident of Ganemulla, Gampaha District, Sri Lanka. He graduated from the University of Peradeniya in 2002 as a production engineer and had been working in Pakistan since 2010. He had worked for Rajco Sporting Goods Manufacturing Company in Sialkot since 2012. At the time of his murder, he was the General Superintendent (General Manager) at the Rajco Industries garment factory in Sialkot. He was married to Nilushi Dissanayaka and the father of two young sons, aged 14 and 9 years (as of 2021).[10][11]

Incident

Background

The Government of Pakistan had earlier banned Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan, declaring it a militant organization after several run-ins with the state but later decided to lift the ban after signing an agreement with the organisation in November, 2021 amid violent protests [12] [13][9][14]

Mob and murder

According to Rao Sardar Ali Khan, Inspector General of Police of the Punjab Police, a mob of 800 men gathered at the Rajco factory at 10:00 on Friday the December 3, 2021 after it was reported that Kumara had torn a poster inscribed with Islamic verses and had committed blasphemy. The mob searched for Kumara, finding him on the roof of the factory. They had dragged him while beating him severely, he was dead by 11:28 and his body was set on fire by the violent mob on the Wazirabad road.[15]

Investigation and arrests

Farhan Idrees was identified as the main culprit who was one of the masterminds involved in the incident and over 100 individuals were arrested by the police. It was revealed that all of them who were arrested had link with TLP.[16] Kumara's body was flown through Sri Lankan airlines and arrived in Sri Lanka on 06 December 2021.[2]

A postmortem carried out by the Pakistani authorities had indicated that skull and jaw fractures as as the cause of death. All his vital organs had been affected, while torture marks were visible all over his body. His spinal cord was broken at three locations. All his bones were broken other than one foot. 99 per cent of his body was burned.[15]

Reactions

Prime Minister of Pakistan Imran Khan expressed his disbelief and anger in a tweet saying “The Islamic mob attack on a factory in Sialkot and the burning alive of a Sri Lankan manager is a day of shame for Pakistan. I am overseeing the investigations and let there be no mistakes, all those responsible will be punished with the full severity of the law. Arrests are being made”.[17]

Pakistan's Defence Minister Pervez Khattak, while reacting to the incident, provoked controversy when he said "murders take place when young people get emotional".[18] Later, he issued a clarification stating he "vehemently condemned" the incident and that his earlier remarks were in response to a question whether the lynching was a consequence of the government allowing too much leeway to the TLP in the country as a result of a "deal".[19]

On 4 December 2021, both the Government of Sri Lanka and the opposition party condemned the incident and urged immediate action to punish the perpetrators.[20] The Parliament of Sri Lanka urged the authorities in Pakistan to ensure the rights of the Sri Lankan expat workers in Pakistan to be safeguarded.[21] On 6 December, Kumara's remains were repatriated with state honours from Lahore to Colombo via a SriLankan Airlines flight.[22]

Sri Lankan High Commissioner to Pakistan, Vice Admiral Mohan Wijewickrama assured that the incident will have no effect on the relations between Sri Lanka and Pakistan noting the close social, defence, and commerce ties between the two countries.[23]

Following an appeal for compensation by Kumara's widower, Sri Lanka's Cabinet of Ministers approved a grant of Rs 2.5 million (USD $12,322) to the family of Priyantha Kumara to be paid from the Employees' Welfare Fund of the Bureau of Foreign Employment considering his contribution as a migrant worker.[24][25]

In Islamabad, a condolence event was held at the Prime Minister's Office to honour Kumara. While addressing the occasion, prime minister Imran Khan announced a civil award for Malik Adnan, a colleague who tried to save Kumara's life from the mob, and reiterated that "as long as I am alive, I will not allow incidents like the Sialkot lynching to happen again".[26][27] The business community of Sialkot raised USD $100,000 for Kumara's family, and also announced that his widow would continue to receive his monthly salary.[26][27]

Reference

  1. ^ "It's youthful exuberance, happens all the time, says Pak defence minister on lynching of Sri Lankan man". India Today. 6 December 2021. Retrieved 8 December 2021.
  2. ^ a b c "Pakistan: Killing of Sri Lankan accused of blasphemy sparks protests". ADA derana. 6 December 2021. Retrieved 7 December 2021.
  3. ^ Sadiq, Imran (2021-12-03). "Sialkot mob lynches Sri Lankan factory manager, burns corpse over blasphemy allegations". DAWN.COM. Retrieved 2021-12-03.
  4. ^ "Mob in Pakistan's Punjab province lynches Sri Lankan citizen over alleged 'blasphemy'". The Hindu. PTI. 2021-12-03. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 2021-12-03.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  5. ^ Sirajuddin (6 December 2021). "'Murders happen when emotions are high': Minister says govt shouldn't be blamed for Sialkot lynching". Dawn. Retrieved 8 December 2021.
  6. ^ Mehmood, Abid (4 December 2021). "Ghastly murder of Lankan man in Sialkot shames nation". Dawn. Retrieved 6 December 2021.
  7. ^ "Pakistan: Killing of Sri Lankan accused of blasphemy sparks protests". BBC News. 6 December 2021. Retrieved 6 December 2021.
  8. ^ "Pakistan police: Mob kills Sri Lankan over alleged blasphemy". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2021-12-04.
  9. ^ a b "Man tortured and killed in Pakistan over alleged blasphemy". the Guardian. 2021-12-03. Retrieved 2021-12-04.
  10. ^ "The human remains of Diyawadanage Don Nandasiri Priyantha Kumara to be brought to Sri Lanka tomorrow". www.news.lk. Retrieved 5 December 2021.
  11. ^ "Explained: The second violent run-in for Sri Lanka in Pakistan and lessons for India". The Indian Express. 2021-12-04. Retrieved 2021-12-04.
  12. ^ "TLP Protest". Times of India. Retrieved 2021-12-08.
  13. ^ "TLP no longer proscribed outfit after govt removes name from first schedule of anti-terrorism act". www.geo.tv. Retrieved 2021-12-04.
  14. ^ "Hardline mob in Pakistan lynches Lankan over 'blasphemy'". The Indian Express. 2021-12-04. Retrieved 2021-12-04.
  15. ^ a b "Postmortem report, videos reveal new details on lynching of Sri Lankan in Sialkot". Adaderana. Retrieved 7 December 2021.
  16. ^ ANI. "Pakistan: More than 100 arrested over mob killing of Sri Lankan manager". Khaleej Times. Retrieved 2021-12-04.
  17. ^ "Imran Khan admits lynching incident of Sri Lankan 'day of shame for Pakistan'". mint. 2021-12-04. Retrieved 2021-12-04.
  18. ^ "Pakistan minister defends mob lynching, says 'even murders take place' when youth get emotional". Firstpost. 2021-12-06. Retrieved 2021-12-08.
  19. ^ "Pervez Khattak issues clarification, says he 'vehemently condemns' Sialkot lynching". Geo News. 7 December 2021. Retrieved 8 December 2021.
  20. ^ Srinivasan, Meera (2021-12-04). "President Gotabaya, PM Mahinda condemn lynching incident in Pakistan". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 2021-12-04.
  21. ^ "Sri Lanka's Parliament condemns Sri Lankan national's lynching in Pakistan". The Hindu. PTI. 2021-12-04. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 2021-12-04.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  22. ^ Mehmood, Asif (6 December 2021). "Remains of Priyantha Kumara reach Colombo". The Express Tribune. Retrieved 7 December 2021.
  23. ^ "Sialkot incident will have no impact on the two countries' friendly ties: SL high commissioner". www.dailymirror.lk. Retrieved 6 December 2021.
  24. ^ "Cabinet nod to provide a grant of Rs. 2.5 mn to family of Priyantha Kumara". Daily Mirror. Retrieved 7 December 2021.
  25. ^ "Govt to grant Rs. 2.5 Mn to the family of late Priyantha Kumara". News 1st. 7 December 2021. Retrieved 7 December 2021.
  26. ^ a b "PM Imran vows to go after those resorting to violence in the name of religion". Dawn. 7 December 2021. Retrieved 7 December 2021.
  27. ^ a b "Will not spare people resorting to violence in the name of religion: PM Imran Khan". Geo News. 7 December 2021. Retrieved 7 December 2021.
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