LAHORE: The trial over the lynching of Sri Lankan national Priyantha Kumara in Sialkot has commenced in Kot Lakhpat Jail.
An anti-terrorism court (ATC) Natasha Naseem conducted the trial hearing on Saturday against 89 suspects accused of mob lynching of the foreigner who was managing a factory. The copies of the case challan were distributed among 89 accused of the case in the hearing. The court adjourned hearing to frame charges against the accused till March 12.
The prosecution team led by deputy prosecutor general Abdur Rauf Watto also appeared before the court. The prosecution has added 40 witnesses to the charge sheet, while videos and digital evidence. DNA reports, eyewitnesses and forensic evidence have also been made part of it. The prosecution has also added the factory manager who attempted to save Priyantha Kumara among the witness.
According to the charge sheet, ten CCTV footage taken from the factory have been sent for forensic tests. it said the accused were arrested with the help of mobile footage and mobile phones recovered from over 55 suspects.
Punjab government had decided to conduct the trial in Kot Lakhpat Jail with a special prosecution team owing to its sensitivity after being transferred from Sialkot. A three-member special prosecution team headed by Abdul Rauf Watto has been directed to submit a progress report on regular basis to Prosecutor-General Punjab.
Priyantha Kumara, a 49-year-old Sri Lankan national, was lynched by a mob of factory workers on December 3 over accusations of blasphemy and his body was set ablaze. A first information report (FIR) was registered against hundreds of unidentified suspects including factory workers.
The authorities constituted 10 teams to identify the culprits through CCTV footage, conducted raids and arrested them. A police investigation determined the role of seven key accused in the lynching incident in Sialkot. All seven accused confessed to their crime during initial investigation and recorded their confessional statements. The incident was widely condemned by political and religious figures across Pakistan.
