COLOMBO, Sept 19: Sri Lanka’s main Muslim party, the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC), has asked the government to carry out an investigation into Monday’s massacre of 10 Muslim construction workers in eastern Sri Lanka after local residents blamed the police for the killing.

“We need a proper investigation before we can accuse any group. We have urged the government to carry out an impartial probe and bring the culprits to justice whoever they may be. We have spoken to the local residents where the killing took place and they believe the police’s special task force (STF) troops were responsible,” Muslim Congress leader Rauf Hakeem said on Tuesday.

According to reports from the area the victims were found blindfolded, hands tied and hacked to death in an area in close proximity to an STF camp.

The government’s security spokesman, Keheliya Rambukwella, told the media that the police were being blamed ‘without concrete evidence’ and said the killings had the ‘hallmarks’ of the LTTE.

Shops were closed on Tuesday in Ampara district, where the incident took place as a strike was declared in the area as a mark of protest.