On Friday the 3rd of December, factory workers in Sialkot lynched a Sri Lankan export manager and then proceeded to burn his corpse over alleged blasphemy accusations. The victim has been identified as Priyantha Kumara by the Sialkot District Police. According to Punjab Police, the Punjab IG is overseeing the investigation and so far 100 people have been arrested, including one of the main culprits and more are being identified through CCTV footage of the event.
After the news broke out, Prime Minister Imran Khan said that the “horrific, vigilante attack” on the factory and the burning alive of the Sri Lankan man “…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”. Meanwhile, the Sri Lankan foreign ministry said that it expected Pakistani authorities to “take the required action to investigate and ensure justice”.
However, over the past 24 hours, numerous video clips have been circulating online of the horrific incident and have made us wonder if we, as a nation, have left our tolerance and humanity behind. Thus, when the news broke out, Pakistanis were appalled and they took to Twitter to express their utter disgust and shame over the incident. Amongst them were numerous Pakistani celebrities who used their star power to raise their voice against the inhumane atrocity carried out in Sialkot and ask for immediate corrective action from the government against the perpetrators.
Pakistani Celebrities Call For Immediate Justice To Be Served
Mahira Khan, Samina Peerzada, Frieha Altaf and Hareem Farooq questioned PM Imran Khan in their tweets and asked whether incidents such as these will ever end and will there ever be justice served to those affected by these heinous crimes? Or would more lynching instances follow suit in the future? They questioned aloud why incidents like these are allowed to happen time and time again and what is being done to put a stop to them.
Kubra Khan tweeted about how ashamed, heartbroken and enraged she was over the incident while Ahsan Khan quoted The Propjet SAWW and stated how Islam’s entire message is based on forgiveness and mercy, especially shown towards others.
Mansha Pasha called out those who had legitimised these fringe elements of extremism for their political advancements and their sheer hypocrisy when they publicly condemned the incident, forgetting the roles they played in the mechanism of intolerance.
Anoushey Ashraf wrote a letter of apology to all Sri Lankans and expressed her regret and condolences to Priyantha Kumara’s family.
Pakistani Pop Stars Also Left Aghast
Shahzad Roy expressed his concerns over rising extremism and radicalisation in Pakistan.
Meanwhile, Asim Azhar prayed for Pakistanis to become better human beings.
Pakistani Cricketers Also Condemn The Act Of Violence
Lastly, Pakistani cricket stars also took to Twitter to express their concerns regarding the unfortunate incident. Shoaib Malik asked for swift justice, Shahid Afridi quoted a verse from the Holy Quran which states that killing one person is equal to killing all of humanity, and lastly, Mohammad Hafeez declared the day as a black day for Pakistani society.
Condemning horrific attack on a factory & shameful incident in Sialkot. As Pakistani i wil call it a black day for our society. #Sialkot #Justice
— Mohammad Hafeez (@MHafeez22) December 3, 2021
