Pune (Maharashtra) [India], December 28 (ANI): The former Indian Naval officers whose conviction has been reduced to jail terms in Qatar can serve their sentence in Indian prison due to an earlier agreement between New Delhi and Doha, senior advocate Adish Aggarwala said on Thursday.
Aggarwala who is also the President of Supreme Court Bar Association also thanked the Indian government for the continued support to the detained officers.
The Qatari Court on Thursday commuted the death penalty sentence of eight ex-Indian naval officers arrested last year in the Dahra Global case and commuted the sentence to jail terms.
“We thank Modi government for providing all assistance to our eight former Navy personnel who were awarded death sentence who were earlier given death penalty…today, the sentence has been reduced. They still have a right to appeal to the Court of Seccession, which is the highest court of Qatar,” Aggarwala said in a video statement.
He further said that the 2014 agreement between India and Qatar allows them to bring back prisoners imprisoned in each other’s jail to serve the remaining sentence back home.
“Even if they don’t get any relief, these Navy officers can be brought back to India as per the agreement between India and Qatar. There is an agreement of 2014, where the prisoners can be brought back from one country to other between these two countries to undergo these sentence announced by the foreign court,” the senior advocate said.
He added, “So, the government of India can bring back the officers and they will be required to undergo sentence in Indian prison. I am certain the government will provide more assistance to them”.
Former Navy Deputy Chief Vice Admiral MS Pawar called this a matter of “great relief”
and thanked the “relentless efforts” of Indian Embassy in Qatar and the Ministry of External Affairs.
“It is a matter of great relief that the death sentence awarded to 8 Navy veterans has been commuted by the Court of Appeals in Qatar…thanks to the relentless efforts of the families of the veterans and the rock-solid support provided to them by the Embassy in Qatar, the Ministry of External Affairs in India…and at the highest political levels in the country,” Pawar said in a video statement.
He also thanked the Qatari legal system and authorities for their “benevolent approach” adding that India should now try to bring back the Navy veterans.
“We still have miles to go before the innocents are brought back. I have no doubt about their innocence and they are perhaps victims of circumstances…I have no doubt that they will never indulge in any unprofessional conduct that would bring disrepute and disgrace to the Navy and the nation,” he further said.
Another former Navy personnel, Vice Admiral Anil Chawla (retd.) also called it a matter of relief and expressed gratefulness towards the Emir of Qatar.
“This news has come as a huge relief to the entire country as well as the naval community… We are grateful to the Emir of Qatar for having commuted the death penalty, and also to the Government of India, especially for the personal intervention of Prime Minister Modi…We hope the officers are released as early as possible and sent back to India,” Chawla told ANI.
Earlier in the day, MEA also said that the detailed judgement in the case is awaited and are in close touch with the legal team in Qatar.
“We have noted the verdict today of the Court of Appeal of Qatar in the Dahra Global case, in which the sentences have been reduced,” the MEA stated.
“The detailed judgement is awaited. We are in close touch with the legal team as well as the family members to decide on the next steps. Our Ambassador to Qatar and other officials were present in the Court of Appeal today, along with the family members. We have stood by them since the beginning of the matter and we will continue to extend all consular and legal assistance. We will also continue to take up the matter with the Qatari authorities,” it added.
Former diplomat Bhaswati Mukherjee said that there still lies hope when Emir of Qatar will exercise his pardon in the holy month of Ramzan in March.
“My heart goes out to those families who must have been going through mental torture…now there is hope that when the Emir will exercise his pardon, which will be in March during the holy month of Ramzan…they will be able to come back to India safely…a great triumph for Indian diplomacy and our Prime Minister,” she said in a video statement.
The eight Indian nationals have been imprisoned in Qatar since October 2022 and were accused of allegedly spying on a submarine programme. The retired naval personnel were sentenced to death by a Qatar court on charges that have not yet been made public officially.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani on the sidelines of the COP28 summit in Dubai and discussed bilateral partnership and the “well-being of the Indian community” living in Qatar. (ANI)
