Hindu Munnani has urged Prime Minister Modi to intervene to save Sri Lankan Tamil Sivarasa Anojan from the death sentence in Saudi Arabia. Anojan reportedly made some comments against Prophet Mohammed while reacting to disparaging comments against Hindus on social media.
Hindu Munnani State President Kadeswara C Subramaniam, in a statement dated September 24, said, “It all started when a Muslim posted on social media making disparaging comments about Hindu Bhagwan Shiva. It was a very serious and objectionable comment and amounted to blasphemy. Upset by the comments about Bhagwan Shiva, Anojan, who is working in Saudi Arabia, shared some comments about Mohammed Nabi and raised some questions about the Prophet. It was only a reaction to the comments made by a Muslim. His reaction endorsed his Hindu sentiment. He is educated and an engineer. But Sri Lankan Muslims, not considering him a compatriot, complained to the authorities, which showed their religious fanaticism. They translated his comments. The trial, without considering the merits, sentenced him to five years in jail plus a penalty, and his family challenged this in the HC besides offering an unconditional apology. It gave him the death sentence. It is a challenge to true secularism. Wherever Hindus are minorities, they face persecution from majority Muslims. It showed that Hindus should face such atrocities without opposing.”
சிவராசா அனோஜனை காப்பாற்ற வேண்டும்.. அரசுக்கு இந்துமுன்னணி கோரிக்கை.. | #SivarasaAnojan #Srilanka #SaudiArabia #HMNews #HinduMunnani pic.twitter.com/fML6XVoE8A
— Hindu Munnani (@hindumunnani_tn) September 24, 2026
Hindu Munnani said, “In India, we allow most objectionable comments on Hindutva daily in the name of democracy and secularism. It is not hate speech for our courts and politicians. Anojan’s parents have requested the Sri Lankan President and Leader of Opposition to save him from the gallows. We appeal to Hindus from all over the world to express their solidarity with Anojan and give support for his release and repatriation. PM Modi should intervene as India has good relations with Saudi rulers. We should support Anojan in the same way that we supported Bangladesh Hindus when they were attacked or ill-treated or persecuted.”
The Background:
Sivarasa Anojan, a Tamilian from Narpittimunai in Sri Lanka’s Eastern Province, is facing a death sentence in Saudi Arabia after a Facebook post about Prophet Muhammad. He had travelled there for employment about nine months ago.
It is widely confirmed that Anojan Sivarajh made a comment about Prophet Muhammad Nabi under the post about killing the dog named Subramani, who joined his owner on a Hindu pilgrimage to the Kathirgamam Temple in Sri Lanka. https://t.co/bCb6jvuM53 pic.twitter.com/AreyMwsJ64
— Kapilan Sachchithananthan (@iamkapilan) July 1, 2026
According to reports, it stems from an online religious dispute in Sri Lanka. Anojan was accused of sharing an AI-generated image linked to the Kaaba and comments on the same. The post was translated into Arabic and reported to Saudi authorities.
On July 15, the Al-Ahsa Criminal Court sentenced him to five years’ imprisonment and a fine of three million Saudi riyals, the maximum penalties available under the first paragraph of Article 6 of Saudi Arabia’s Anti-Cyber Crime Law.
Anojan informed the court that he deleted the post within roughly ten minutes, saying the comment was made in the heat of an argument and that he had no intention of insulting Islam or the Prophet. Anojan appealed, while the prosecution also appealed, seeking a harsher penalty under Sharia law. The prosecution’s appeal was accepted, and the sentence was raised to death.
On September 23, President of Sri Lanka Anura Kumara Dissanayake met Anojan’s parents at the Presidential Secretariat and assured them that the government is pursuing every legal and diplomatic avenue to secure a pardon. A formal written appeal will be submitted to the King of Saudi Arabia. President’s Counsels Upul Kumarapperuma and Faiszer Musthapha have agreed to assist with the case.
Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Vijitha Herath informed Parliament that a delegation led by the Deputy Speaker would travel to Saudi Ar
abia carrying the President’s appeal. He said the government would reimburse the legal expenses incurred by Anojan’s family. The Foreign Ministry said it was closely monitoring the case through the Sri Lankan Embassy in Riyadh and engaging Saudi authorities diplomatically.
Meanwhile, Free Media Movement, South Asian Women in Media, Sri Lanka Working Journalists Association, Tamil Media Alliance and Sri Lanka Muslim Media Forum have issued a joint appeal urging Saudi leaders to grant clemency on humanitarian grounds while respecting the judicial process.
Questions have also been raised over who represented Anojan. The appeal names the Saudi attorney Adlan Abdullah Al-Subaie of Hsn Alansah Company for Lawyership and Legal Consultations, a firm engaged by the Sri Lankan authorities, but the family says a different lawyer appeared in court and that they were never given that lawyer’s identity or contact details.
The appeal argued that Anojan had not intended to diminish the status of the Prophet Muhammad or offend the sanctity of religion and that, where punishment is imposed under the Sharia principle of ta’zir, its purpose should include deterrence, rehabilitation and correction rather than becoming disproportionate to the offence.
President’s Counsel Faiszer Musthapha told the media, “Immediate priority is obtaining the formal written verdict, since every remaining legal option depends on establishing what the appellate court decided and why. If an appeal to the Saudi Supreme Court remains available within the reported one-month period, the deadline must not be allowed to lapse.”
It all started earlier this year. A dog known as Subramani, named after Bhagwan Murugan, had accompanied pilgrims for some 450 kilometres to Kathirkamam Murugan, surviving on a vegan diet, and became a familiar presence on the route. A Muslim from Kalmunai kicked the dog, which was filmed. The footage circulated widely, and he was arrested on an animal cruelty charge and later released on bail after apologising. Following this, there have been hostile exchanges online between Hindus and Muslims.
It is pertinent to note that none of the Dravidian parties — DMK, AIADMK, TVK, Left parties, Seeman’s NTK, VCK, DMDK, May 17 Movement and Dravidar Kazhagam — which claim to be the saviours of Island Tamils, have shown interest in the Anojan issue, fearing that it would incur the wrath of Muslims. Hindu Munnani alone has taken it up with the PM.
