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LAHORE: The remains of the Sri Lankan factory manager Priyantha Kumara, who was lynched by a mob in Sialkot over blasphemy allegations last week, were repatriated to Colombo from Lahore airport on Monday afternoon.
The body was brought to the airport in an ambulance where Punjab Minister for Minority Affairs Ejaz Alam and Prime Minister’s Special Envoy for Interfaith Harmony Hafiz Tahir Mahmood Ashrafi received it.
Other officials present on the occasion included Honorary Consul General of Sri Lanka Yasin Joya and representatives of the Punjab Home Department and Sri Lankan High Commission. Priyantha Kumar’s remains were repatriated with state honours.
Punjab Chief Minister Usman Bazdar was supposed to send off the body of the Sri Lanka national, but he could not reach the airport due to a “busy schedule in Islamabad”. Priyantha’s last rites will be performed upon arrival of his body in Sri Lanka.
Talking to journalists at the airport, Ashrafi said the whole nation would have to unite to eradicate extremism the way it had eliminated terrorism from the country. “Today is a day of grief but we promise that the killers of Priyantha Kumara will be brought to justice,” he added.
7 more prime suspects arrested
Earlier in the day, the Punjab police announced the arrest of seven more of the prime suspects allegedly involved in the lynching of 49-year-old Kumara, taking the total number of arrests to 131.
Over the past three days, the police have arrested scores. According to the police, the suspects included the individual allegedly involved in planning the attack as well as others who waged violence and incited others. The police added that out of the 131 people arrested, 26 played a “central role” in the brutal killing.
The statement added that Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar and the inspector general of police for Punjab were continuously monitoring the investigation and the secretary prosecution was tasked with the prosecution of the case.
