Saudi Arabia has dropped all charges against 24-year-old Anojan Sivarasa, a Sri Lankan Tamil Hindu migrant worker who was sentenced to death in September over an alleged blasphemous Facebook post against Prophet Muhammad. The decision was made by the Kingdom’s Public Prosecution Office on 9th November (Monday). The development marks an end to the proceedings against Anojan.
The announcement was made by Sri Lanka’s Foreign Ministry on Wednesday, which also informed that plans were underway to bring him home. Foreign Affairs, Foreign Employment and Tourism Minister Vijitha Herath conveyed that every arrangement will be put in place to facilitate Anojan’s return shortly after he was released from all legal processes and penalties in the Gulf country. According to him, the latter could arrive in the next one to two weeks.
Anojan’s family also paid a visit to the Ministry to thank President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, the Foreign Ministry and other officials as well as organisations that helped secure his release.
Herath praised President Dissanayake’s leadership, the Foreign Ministry’s diplomatic efforts, and the assistance of the Saudi Arabian government and courts. He also appreciated the legal team that flew to the Arab state to assist with the case, as well as the diplomatic missions and officials of both nations.
On 14th October, the Kingdom’s Supreme Court overturned the execution verdict after intervention of Sri Lankan officials. However, other sanctions persisted, and the government continued to work to ensure that every legal matter was resolved.
Anojan was handed down the capital punishment by an appeals court on 17th September over allegations of purportedly insulting Prophet Muhammad. A video of a young Muslim man kicking a dog following Hindu pilgrims on the yearly foot trek to Kataragama went viral on social media in late June, sparking an argument after which insulting remarks were hurled at a Hindu deity, triggering a response from Anjon.
He later deleted the post and even uploaded an apology video. According to his brother, someone had taken a screenshot and sent it to his employer and Saudi authorities, eventually resulting in his arrest and imprisonment in July. He mentioned, “People in Saudi Arabia knew nothing about this matter. It was individuals in Sri Lanka who sent emails to the company where my brother worked. I do not even wish to mention who those people are.”
The Al-Ahsa Criminal Court had initially sentenced him to five years in prison and imposed a fine of three million Saudi riyals, but prosecutors later pressed to have him tried under Sharia Law. The appellate court accepted the request and changed his five-year prison sentence to death.
