Qatar Court Accepts India's Appeal Against Death Sentence Of Eight Former Navy Personnel
A court in Qatar has reportedly accepted an appeal filed by India against the death sentences of eight former Indian Navy personnel.
Earlier this month, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) had said that it was exploring all legal options over what it termed as a shocking verdict by the Qatari court.
The former?Indian Navy personnel, identified as Captain Saurabh Vashisht, Commander Purenendu Tiwari, Captain Birendra Kumar Verma, Commander Sugunakar Pakala, Commander Sanjeev Gupta, Commander Amit Nagpal, and Sailor Ragesh were sentenced to death on October 26.
Why is there so much mystery?
However, the charges against the eight men who had taken VRS from the Navy and were employees of Al Dara company were not made public.
The MEA also did not reveal the details, citing the "confidential nature of the proceedings."
But it is widely speculated that they were accused of espionage.
When were they arrested?
The eight former Navy personnel were arrested in August 2022 and have been in jail since.
What families say
According to the families of the arrested men, they were working with the Al Dahra security company, which had some arrangements with the Qatari authorities to facilitate training for naval personnel.
According to a relative of one of the jailed ex-Navy personnel, the eight men were not engaged in espionage but had gone to Qatar to help with the country's naval program. Qatar has also not publicly made any proof to substantiate these spying allegations.
The kin of the former naval personnel said the wrong information circulated could further endanger the situation that their loved ones find themselves in.
The kin said the eight retired naval personnel served the nation with the highest integrity and honour, adding that they were extremely distraught and traumatised by their year-long detention. What has further hurt them is the fact that the circumstance of the detention has been misreported, they added.
How government has reacted
Last week, External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said that the appeal process against the death sentence is underway and that India is engaged with the Qatari authorities on the matter.
He also added that the government will continue to extend all legal and consular assistance to Indian nationals.
"The appeal process is underway and we would hope for a positive outcome," Bagchi had said.
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