Qatar court accepts appeal against death penalty to 8 Indians

Qatar court accepts appeal against death penalty to 8 Indians

THE APPEAL filed in the appellate court in Qatar against the death sentence awarded to eight former personnel of the Indian Navy has been accepted, sources said on Friday. This took place almost two weeks after the Indian government had said that the appeal had been filed in the case.

The eight former personnel of the Indian Navy, arrested in an alleged case of espionage, were handed the death sentence by Qatar’s Court of First Instance last month.

India had got a round of consular access to the detainees on November 7. However, the judgment remains confidential, according to the Ministry of External Affairs, and has been shared with the legal team.

The Indian nationals, all employees of Doha-based Dahra Global, were taken into custody in August 2022. The charges against them were not made public by Qatari authorities. But sources said the Indian nationals had been working in their private capacity with Dahra Global to oversee the induction of Italian small stealth submarines U2I2.

According to a report in the Financial Times, the eight Indians had been charged with spying for Israel.

The arrested Indians were identified as Captain Navtej Singh Gill, Captain Birendra Kumar Verma, Captain Saurabh Vasisht, Commander Amit Nagpal, Commander Purnendu Tiwari, Commander Sugunakar Pakala, Commander Sanjeev Gupta and Sailor Ragesh.

Days after the verdict was pronounced, which India had called ‘deeply shocking’, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar had met the family members of the eight and assured them that the government attaches “the highest importance” to the case.

Stating that he “fully shares the concerns and pain of the families”, Jaishankar told them that the government will make all efforts to secure their release.

Soon after the ruling was made public, the MEA had said that it is attaching “high importance” to this case and is exploring all legal options. “We have initial information that the Court of First Instance of Qatar has passed a judgment in the case involving eight Indian employees of Al Dahra company,” it had said.

Following their arrest last year, the eight former Navy personnel got some relief from Qatari authorities when they were moved out of solitary confinement and put in a double-bed occupancy in a jail ward along with their colleagues. The Qatari authorities, sources said, never gave an explanation for the exact reasons for their arrest.

On March 25 this year, charges were filed against the eight men, and the trial began on March 29. In May, Dahra Global closed its operations in Doha and all former employees – primarily Indians – have since returned home.

In addition to the government’s efforts, the families of the former Navy personnel have also filed a mercy plea to the Emir of Qatar, who is known to grant pardons during Ramadan and Eid.