As more arrests were made and condemnation continued to pour in over the lynching of Sri Lankan factory manager Priyantha Kumara in Sialkot over blasphemy allegations, some new footage showed that a colleague of the man tried to protect him from the mob before the ghastly incident
Kumara was tortured to death and his body was set on fire on Friday. The employees of Rajco Industries, located on Wazirabad Road, had staged a protest on the premises on Friday alleging that he had committed blasphemy
The protesters had suspended traffic on Wazirabad Road and were joined by all the factory workers and numerous locals. On seeing the mob gradually swell from a few dozen to hundreds, Kumara had dashed to the roof
Footage shot before the lynching showed a colleague trying to protect Kumara on the roof of the factory where he had fled while the mob of around two dozen people slowly grew in number
The workers had later overpowered the colleague and dragged Kumara out on the road and tortured him with kicks, stones, and iron rods, killing him on the spot. The mob had then set the body on fire
Kumara, a Sri Lankan Christian, had been working at Rajco Industries for 10 years
The brutal killing drew widespread condemnation from government officials and human rights bodies
Reacting to the "horrific vigilante attack", Prime Minister Imran Khan said it was a day of shame for Pakistan. "I am overseeing the investigations, and let there be no mistake all those responsible will be punished with the full severity of the law & arrests are in progress" he tweeted
13 primary suspects among 118 arrested
Late on Friday, the Sialkot DC and DPO had briefed a meeting of provincial officials about the details of the incident through a video link. They claimed the deceased was known to be a strict administrator, adding around 110 suspects had been arrested, while raids were being conducted to apprehend the others
In a late-night statement, the IGP claimed that two main suspects, Farhan Idrees and Usman Rasheed, were among those arrested
On Saturday, Special Assistant to the Punjab Chief Minister on Information Hasaan Khawar updated the number of arrests to 118, saying that 200 raids had been conducted and that among those detained were 13 primary suspects
In a press conference in Lahore alongside Punjab IGP Rao Sardar Ali Khan, the special assistant said the police had obtained footage from 160 CCTV cameras, and additional video and data sources such as mobile data and call records were also being analyzed
"There has been considerable progress and the investigation is continuing," Khawar said, adding said that the body would be handed over to the Sri Lankan embassy through the interior and foreign ministries
"I want to again reassure you that justice won't only be carried out but will be seen to be carried out," he said, adding that no leeway would be granted to anyone and action would be taken even if officials were found to be negligent in their duties
The IGP provided a timeline of Friday's events, saying that according to the information received so far, the incident began at 10:02 am on Friday and escalated to violence and beatings around 10:45 am, leading to Kumara's death at 11:05 am. He said the police were alerted to the incident at 11:28 am and reached the spot at 11:45 am
The IGP said a challan would be submitted in an anti-terrorism court as soon as possible to bring the culprits to justice
Sri Lankan PM confident that PM Imran will 'bring those involved to justice
Sri Lankan Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa said he was shocked by the brutal and fatal attack on the manager
"My heart goes out to his wife and family. #SriLanka and her people are confident that PM [Imran Khan] will keep to his commitment to bring all those involved to justice," he tweeted on Saturday
The Sri Lankan parliament also condemned the lynching during its session on Saturday, according to a report by the Sri Lankan media organization News 1st
"The government wishes to express its condolence over the death of Priyantha Kumara Diyawadana, a Sri Lankan University degree holder and a manager at a factory in Pakistan, who was the victim of an attack carried out by extremists regardless of territorial boundaries. Further, the government strongly condemns the inhumane attack that took the world by surprise," minister Dinesh Gunawardena said
He appreciated Prime Minister Imran's "intervention to ensure justice is served", the report added
Sri Lanka not blaming entire country: Qureshi
Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi called Kumara's lynching a "tragic incident" and "a matter of shame" for the country
In a press conference in Lahore on Saturday, Qureshi said the incident was being monitored at the highest state levels, with Prime Minister Imran Khan overseeing the investigation
"We are in contact with Sri Lanka [...] we kept their high commissioner updated moment-by-moment and I want to share that they have appreciated Pakistan's stance and prompt reaction
"This is an incident that has pained everyone ... but they think that 'we can't blame an entire segment or country because of this.' They [do] expect that Pakistan will bring those responsible to justice"
Qureshi added that he would contact the Sri Lankan foreign minister today and update him on the latest developments. "They think that this is a tragic act but our Pakistani government & nation have no link with it" he added
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