SIALKOT: The Punjab police took to Twitter on Sunday morning to announce that they had arrested six more people in connection with the Sialkot lynching case, in which a Sri Lankan national, Priyantha Kumara, was murdered and burnt after being tortured.
The mob had accused him of having committed blasphemy. More than 900 individuals had the FIR registered against them under several sections of the Pakistan Penal Code including the Anti-Terrorism Act.
According to the FIR, Kumara was severely tortured with punches, kicks, and baton before being killed and burnt alive. According to the FIR, Kumara was killed in presence of the area Station House Officer (SHO) who could not do anything due to having been outnumbered by the mob.
The Punjab police has said that the arrested individuals went into hiding and were staying at their friends’ and relatives’ place. It further announced that 19 suspects were directly involved in the killing, of the total 124 arrested suspects so far.
Prime Minister Imran Khan had tweeted on Saturday that he had spoken to the Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and conveyed “our nation’s anger & shame to people of Sri Lanka at vigilante killing of Priyantha Diyawadana in Sialkot.”
The killing has caused an outrage over the Pakistan law enforcement personnel’s inability to rescue Kumara from the mob, with people calling out the Punjab police and crying for justice for the 49-year-old Kumara.