Sialkot lynching accused to be tried in jail

Police directed to complete necessary legal procedures

LAHORE:

The Punjab government decided on Saturday to hold the trial of the accused in the Sialkot lynching case within the premises of the prison.

The decision to hold the trial inside the prison was taken after a meeting was held between the prosecution team and the provincial government.

The prosecution has asked the jail administration to make the necessary arrangements to conduct the trial, while the police have been directed to complete the necessary legal procedures and submit the completed challans to the court as soon as possible.

The nation was shell-shocked and disgusted when a Sri Lankan national, Priyantha Kumara, was brutally lynched and his body set on fire by a mob in Sialkot last week.

The sickening incident outraged the nation as the civil and military leaders denounced it as “horrific”, “shameful” and “extra-judicial vigilantism”.

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The Punjab Police on Wednesday arrested eight more accused of their primary role in the Sialkot lynching tragedy.

Recent arrests came after the law enforcement officials traced the culprits via CCTV footage and cellular data.

Among the arrests made by the police was also Imtiaz alias Billi, who was involved in torturing Kumara and desecrating his body. He was arrested from a bus bound for Rawalpindi.

The top military brass has also vowed to show "zero tolerance" to incidents such as the lynching of the foreign national, saying “extremism and terrorism will not be tolerated”.