New Delhi: The Court docket of Attraction of Qatar has dropped the demise sentence given to the eight retired Indian Navy officers who’re at present imprisoned there on fees of espionage, days after Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani on the margins of the COP28 assembly in Dubai.
“Now we have famous the decision right this moment of the Court docket of Attraction of Qatar within the Dahra International case, by which the sentences have been lowered. The detailed judgement is awaited. We’re in shut contact with the authorized crew in addition to the relations to resolve on the following steps,” the Ministry of Exterior Affairs mentioned in a press launch Thursday.
It mentioned, “Our Ambassador to Qatar and different officers had been current within the Court docket of Attraction right this moment, together with the relations. Now we have stood by them for the reason that starting of the matter and we’ll proceed to increase all consular and authorized help. We will even proceed to take up the matter with the Qatari authorities.”
The MEA added, “Because of the confidential and delicate nature of proceedings of this case, it might not be acceptable to make any additional remark at this juncture.”
The demise sentence was handed out to the eight ex-Indian Navy personnel on October 26, 2023. They had been arrested in August 2022. The previous Navy officers had been working with a non-public agency there named Al Dahra International Applied sciences and Consultancy Companies, headquartered in Doha.
This comes after Prime Minister Modi met the Emir on December 2 by which he raised the problem of the demise sentence handed to the eight Navy veterans as New Delhi has urged Doha to halt the demise penalty.
ABP Dwell had reported first that Modi could be discussing the problem with the Qatari Emir and requesting him to scale back the sentence.
Up to now there have been three hearings in Qatar’s Court docket of Attraction – 23 November, 30 November and seven December. Within the meantime, Ambassador Vipul obtained consular entry to the navy officers, Arindam Bagchi, the outgoing spokesperson of the Exterior Affairs Ministry mentioned final week.
The eight navy veterans — 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 — had been arrested in August 2022 on fees of espionage on behalf of Israel, offering it with delicate data concerning Qatar’s navy submarine programme.
The Qatari authorities had rejected their bail pleas a number of instances whereas extending their detention.
Commander Tiwari (retd.) was working because the Managing Director for Al Dahra International Applied sciences and Consultancy Companies earlier than being arrested. He has been a adorned Navy officer who has commanded a number of warships of the Indian Navy. He had even obtained the Pravasi Bharatiya Samman in 2019.
After the demise sentence was handed down, Exterior Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar met the relations of the veterans and guaranteed them of the federal government’s efforts to deliver aid to them.