ISLAMABAD: A Sri Lankan factory manager who worked with a garment manufacturing company in Pakistan and was lynched by a mob on blasphemy allegation was not too popular with workers who had lodged several complaints against him with the owners of the facility, reported a local news channel on Saturday.
Sharing the findings of the criminal investigation into the case, Geo News said Priyantha Kumara Diyawadana “worked as an honest general manager” in the country’s southeastern Sialkot district where he looked after the production work and strictly implemented factory regulations.
“On the day of the incident, Priyantha Kumara visited the production unit where he reprimanded the supervisor for not keeping the place clean,” reported the news channel, adding the same person allegedly instigated workers against the Sri Lankan manager.
“According to the police, Priyantha Kumara had asked workers to remove posters and stickers from the walls which were being painted,” Geo News added. “He also took off some posters himself including one with a religious inscription which led to an outcry. However, he apologized to people on the instruction of his factory owners.”
The investigation also revealed Diyawadana did not know the local language and frequently faced communication problems at work.
While the issue had seemingly settled down after his apology, some workers continued to instigate people who physically attacked him.
The Sri Lankan factory manager ran to the roof where he wanted to hide, but a group of angry workers also chased him over there.
As Diyawadana’s body was dragged by the mob to the road, the security guards deployed at the building left the facility without making an effort to rescue him. His corpse was publicly set on fire in the presence of hundreds of people, many of whom filmed the incident before posting the video clips on social media.
The Pakistani prime minister described it as “a day of shame” for his country, though more than a hundred people were arrested by the police after the incident who are currently being investigated.
Sri Lankan factory manager was not on good terms with Pakistani workers — local media
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Sri Lankan factory manager was not on good terms with Pakistani workers — local media
- Priyantha Kumara, who was lynched by a mob in Sialkot, was accused of blasphemy after he removed a poster with religious inscription from factory’s wall
- According to police investigation, he did not know the local language and apologized to workers after the incident
‘Fully stand with Bangladesh’: Pakistan PM backs decision to boycott India match
- Pakistan’s government have not allowed the national cricket team to play its World Cup match against India on Feb. 15
- Pakistan has accused India of influencing ICC decisions, criticized global cricket body for replacing Bangladesh in World Cup
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday backed his government’s decision to bar the national men’s cricket team from playing against India in the upcoming T20 World Cup tournament, reaffirming support for Bangladesh.
Pakistan’s government announced on social media platform X last week that it has allowed its national team to travel to Sri Lanka for the World Cup. However, it said the Green Shirts will not take the field against India on their scheduled match on Feb. 15.
Pakistan’s participation in the tournament was thrown into doubt after Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Mohsin Naqvi criticized the International Cricket Council (ICC) for replacing Bangladesh with Scotland. The decision was taken after Bangladesh said it would not let its team travel to India out of security concerns.
During a meeting of the federal cabinet, Sharif highlighted that Pakistan has said that politics should be kept away from sports.
“We have taken this stand after careful consideration and in this regard, we should stand fully with Bangladesh,” Sharif said in televised remarks.
“And I believe this is a very reasonable decision.”
Pakistan has blamed India for influencing the ICC’s decisions. The global cricket governing body is currently led by Jay Shah, the head of the Board of Control for Cricket in India. Shah is the son of Indian Home Minister Amit Shah.
Pakistan’s boycott announcement has triggered media frenzy worldwide, with several Indian cricket experts and analysts criticizing Islamabad for the decision. An India-Pakistan cricket contest is by far the most lucrative and eagerly watched match of any ICC tournament.
The ICC has ensured that the two rivals and Asian cricket giants are always in the same group of any ICC event since 2012 to capitalize on the high-stakes game.
The two teams have played each other at neutral venues over the past several years, as bilateral cricket remains suspended between them since 2013 due to political tensions.
Those tensions have persisted since the two nuclear-armed nations engaged in the worst fighting between them since 1999 in May 2025, after India blamed Pakistan for an attack in Indian-administered Kashmir that killed tourists.
Pakistan denied India’s allegations that it was involved in the attack, calling for a credible probe into the incident.
