Sialkot lynching: Pakistan PM Imran Khan announces award for colleague who tried to save Sri Lankan man

A new footage had surfaced of the incident involving the lynching of Priyantha Diyawadana, a Sri Lankan factory manager in Sialkot, following charges of blasphemy against him. The video revealed how his colleague Malik Adnan tried to protect him from the mob.

Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan took notice of the viral footage and acknowledged his courage and bravery.

Malik Adnan tried to shelter and save his Priyantha Diyawadana from the vigilante mob in Sialkot, endangering his own life by physically shielding the victim.

Khan announced to honour Adnan and award him the Tamgha i Shujaat — the second-highest civil award for bravery bestowed by the Islamic Republic of Pakistan.

In a tweet on social media platform Twitter on Sunday, he said, “On behalf of the nation I want to salute moral courage and bravery of Malik Adnan who tried his utmost to shelter and save Priyantha Diyawadana from the vigilante mob in Sialkot, endangering his own life by physically trying to shield victim. We will award him Tamgha i Shujaat.”

Pakistan’s prime minister has also told Sri Lanka’s president that more than 100 people have been detained in the lynching of a Sri Lankan factory manager and suspects will be “prosecuted with the full severity of the law.”

Imran Khan said in an overnight tweet that he spoke to Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa by phone to convey the country’s anger and shame and assure him that justice would be done for Friday’s “vigilante killing” of Priyantha Kumara.

The wife of Engineer Priyantha Kumara has appealed to the Government of Pakistan and the Government of Sri Lanka to conduct a fair trial and bring to justice the murder of her husband in Pakistan.

Priyantha Kumara, a manager of a factory in Sialkot, Pakistan, was publicly attacked and killed by a mob on Friday, December 3.

“I got to know about the brutal murder of my husband from the news, later I saw this on the internet as well. He was a very innocent man” she said, talking to reporters from BBC Sinhala.

“I request leaders of Sri Lanka and Pakistan to do justice for my husband and two children, by bringing the perpetrators to justice” she went on to say.

• Pakistan