The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said on Thursday that India has formally appealed against the death penalty granted by a Qatari court to eight Indian Navy veterans.
The former Indian Navy personnel, working with a Qatari firm, were sentenced to death by a local court on 26 October in an alleged espionage case.
Overview
The information was provided by MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi during a press briefing on Thursday.
Bagchi said, “As we had informed earlier, the Court of First Instance of Qatar passed a judgment on 26 October in the case involving eight Indian employees of Al Dahra Company.”
India has formally appealed against death sentences handed to eight former Indian naval personnel by a court in Qatar https://t.co/KrocRi5bof
— Bloomberg (@business) November 10, 2023
He highlighted that as the judgement is confidential, it has only been shared with the legal team, which is pursuing further legal steps.
Bagchi further confirmed that an appeal has already been filed, and that the Indian government will remain engaged with the Qatari authorities in this matter.
He added that, on 7 November, the Indian embassy in Doha received another consular access to the detainees.
Bagchi reiterated that External Affairs Minister (EAM) Dr S Jaishankar had met the family members earlier this month in New Delhi, and the government is in touch with the families of the detained former naval personnel.
“We will continue to extend all legal and consular support, and I would urge everyone not to engage in speculation considering the sensitive nature of the case,” the MEA spokesperson said.
The Case
The retired naval officials were employees of the Qatari Al Dahra Global Technologies and Consulting Services, advising the Doha government on acquiring submarines.
As per reports, the accused have been sentenced in relation to spying on the submarine program of the Qatar government for Israel.
However, neither the Indian government nor Qatar has revealed the details of the matter.
Captain Navtej Singh Gill, Captain Saurabh Vashisht, Commander Purenendu Tiwari, Captain Birendra Kumar Verma, Commander Sugunakar Pakala, Commander Sanjeev Gupta, Commander Amit Nagpal, and Sailor Ragesh are the eight officers in jail since August 2022.
Trial, Indian Government Response
The detainees were granted consular access in October and December 2022 after being kept in solitary confinement for a long period. Trials in the case took place in March and June this year. On 1 October, the Indian Ambassador to Qatar met the accused.
Ministry of external affairs said that an appeal has been filed against the death sentence handed down to eight former #IndianNavy personnel in #Qatar last monthhttps://t.co/E1uWdxCTAT
— News18 (@CNNnews18) November 9, 2023
After the judgment was announced, the MEA expressed shock, saying it attached high importance to the case and was following it closely.
The Indian EAM also met the families of the detained Indians on 30 October.
After the meeting, Jaishankar stressed that the government attaches the highest importance to the case and fully shares the concerns and pain of the families.
He underlined that the government will continue to make all efforts to secure their release.