A group of estate-sector youth has staged a silent protest in Hatton today (20), calling for a pardon for a Sri Lankan youth who has reportedly been sentenced to death in Saudi Arabia.

The protest was held at the Malliappu Junction in Hatton and was organized by the Federation of Hindu Organisations, Sri Lanka.

The protesters called for the release of Anojan Sivarasa, a Sri Lankan national working in Saudi Arabia who has reportedly been sentenced to death over a social media comment concerning an incident involving a dog during a Hindu pilgrimage from Jaffna to Kataragama.

The comment was reportedly deemed offensive to Islam and a religious leader.

Anojan later posted a video on social media apologizing for the remarks he had made.

According to the information presented, Saudi authorities arrested him after determining that his Facebook comment had insulted Islam and a religious leader. He was initially sentenced to five years in prison and fined 3 million Saudi riyals.

Parliamentarian Shanakiyan Rasamanickam claimed that the sentence was subsequently elevated to a death penalty following an appeal filed with the intervention of the Sri Lankan Government.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that special intervention is currently being made to secure the release of Anojan Sivarasa.