Qatar court accepts India’s appeal against death penalty to 8 Navy veterans

The Indian navy veterans, who worked with private company were arrested in August last year reportedly in an alleged case of espionage

PGurus Newsdesk

November 24, 2023

The Indian navy veterans, who worked with private company were arrested in August last year reportedly in an alleged case of espionage

In the ‘Espionage’ case, Qatar accepts India’s appeal against death penalty for eight navy veterans

In a major development, the Qatar court has accepted India’s appeal against the death sentence of eight former Indian Navy officials on the charges of alleged espionage, as per media reports.

Granted consular access to them, Indian authorities have been working to secure their release.

The Ministry of External Affairs on Thursday said the judgment by the court is still confidential and they are in touch with the Qatari authorities.

MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said the Indian embassy in Doha received another consular access to the detained Indians on Tuesday and that New Delhi will continue to extend all legal and consular support to them.

An appeal was filed against the death sentence handed down to eight former Indian Navy personnel by a Qatari court last month, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said.

The Indian Navy veterans, who worked with private company Al Dahra, were arrested in August last year reportedly in an alleged case of espionage. India reacted to the ruling sharply and called it “deeply” shocking and vowed to explore all legal options in the case. The punishment was announced after the authorities rejected the bail pleas of the Navy veterans several times.

“The judgment is confidential. There is a court of first instance that gave the judgment, which was shared with our legal team. Considering all legal options, an appeal has been filed. We are in touch with the Qatari authorities,” the MEA said, as quoted by India Today.

The eight former Indian Navy officers — 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 — were arrested by Qatar intelligence agency from Doha on August 30, 2022, reported India Today.

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