Nation

Explained: 8 former Indian Navy officers sentenced to death penalty in Qatar

Indian foreign ministry officials, including foreign minister S. Jaishankar, had earlier said that the exact nature of the charges against the 8 Indian men is “not entirely clear”.

By Shreyansh Raghuvanshi
Representative Image

A local court in the Gulf region country of Qatar has sentenced eight former Indian Navy personnel arrested in August 2022 to death. The officers were alleged of spying on behalf of Israel, sharing personal and confidential information of Qatar’s secret submarine project with Israel. India has termed this decision as shocking and said that the government is considering all legal options. The Indian External Affairs Ministry is in contact with the relatives of the above eight people in this regard. The government has taken this issue very seriously from the very beginning and is trying to provide them with whatever help is possible diplomatically.

Sharing the concern over the issue Asaduddin Owaisi, (President of AIMIM & Member of Parliament Lok Sabha (Hyderabad Constituency) who previously also raised the topic in parliament, expressed the same on X, “In August, I had raised the issue of our ex-naval officers stuck in #Qatar. Today, they have been sentenced to death. @narendramodi has boasted about how much “Islamic countries” love him. He must bring our ex-naval officers back. It’s very unfortunate that they face the death row,” said Owaisi. 

Advertisement

 

Relations between India and Qatar have been very strong and in recent years, efforts were also made to expand trade and strategic relations between the two countries. According to Qatari newspaper reports, all eight Indians have been charged with espionage. But neither Qatari nor Indian officials have made the allegations public. These former Navy officers were currently working at Al Dahra Global Technologies, a company related to the Qatar Army.

The Ministry of External Affairs released a statement issued on Thursday: “We have initial information that the Court of First Instance of Qatar has today passed a judgement in the case involving 8 Indian employees of Al Dahra company. We are deeply shocked by the verdict of the death penalty and are awaiting the detailed judgement. We are in touch with the family members and the legal team, and we are exploring all legal options. We attach high importance to this case and have been following it closely. We will continue to extend all consular and legal assistance. We will also take up the verdict with Qatari authorities.”

At the end of the statement it was said “Due to the confidential nature of proceedings of this case, it would not be appropriate to make any further comment at this juncture.” Later, it was also said that Indian requests for providing diplomatic help to these people were ignored. Former Indian Navy spokesperson Captain (retd) Dk Sharma said, “This (Qatar court’s decision) is unbelievable and sad and I am sure the government will leave no stone unturned to
ensure the release of the ex-servicemen.” In the past, the Navy had also taken up the case of former sailors with top officials of the government to ensure their release.

Congress General Secretary Jairam in a post on X (formerly Twitter) Said, “Congress has taken cognizance with deep sorrow and shock of the most disturbing developments in Qatar regarding eight former officers of the Indian Navy. Congress hopes and expects that the Government of India will make maximum use of its diplomatic and political influence with Qatar to ensure that the officers are given full opportunity of appeal and will also make every possible effort to get them released at the earliest”

The issue was also raised by Congress Minister Manish Tewari, (MP, Former Union Minister Information & Broadcasting Govt of India)  “This is the letter👇🏾 that @DrSJaishankar wrote to me in response to my raising the illegal incarceration of our 08 retired Naval Personnel in Doha – Qatar on December 7 th 2022 in the Lok Sabha. Had @DrSJaishankar or @MEAIndia been serious then things would never have come to this pass that the 08 Navy men would have been sentenced to death for an alleged offence whose details are still unknown. The NDA / BJP Government for all its muscular nationalism has completely failed to protect the dignity, honor & lives of our Ex Servicemen. The NDA / BJP Government for all its muscular nationalism has completely failed to protect the dignity, honor & lives of our Ex Servicemen,” said Tewari on X sharing the pictures of letter.

“Indian govt didn’t take it seriously when I first flagged the matter in 2022. Now, more than legal intervention, diplomatic intervention by PM Modi is needed.” 

Further he said: “A fog of opacity surrounds this incident. It is incumbent for the Indian Govt to put out all facts in public domain.

“Information provided by Qatar or Indian Govt don’t add up. The death penalty for 8 Indian Ex-Navy officers questions India’s ability to protect its diaspora” said tewari in an interview with Mirror Now news channel. 

 

The 8 Ex-Indian Navy personnel sentenced to death in Qatar are:-
Captain Navtej Singh Gill, Captain Birendra Kumar Verma, Captain Saurabh Vashishtha, Commander Amit Nagpal, Commander Purnedu Tiwari, Commander Sugunakar Pakala, Commander Sanjeev Gupta and Sailor Rajesh. Of these Five are Executive Officers and there are two technical officers and one sailor.

Anand Ranganathan, a notable author praising Commander Tiwari said “He is Cdr Tiwari. War hero. Recipient of the highest honour for overseas Indians. Qatar arrested him. He spent 14 months in jail. 4 in solitary. Today he was handed death. MEA admitted in June it wasn’t entirely clear on the full nature of charges. This is a travesty of justice.”

Indian foreign ministry officials, including foreign minister S. Jaishankar, had earlier said that the exact nature of the charges against the 8 Indian men is “not entirely clear”.

Shreyansh Raghuvanshi

Shreyansh Raghuvanshi is pursuing BA honours in english from a notable university. He is a media enthusiast with strong content writing skills. Shreyansh is currently working as a intern at BusinessUpturn.com and can be contacted at raghuvanshishreyansh18@gmail.com.

You might also like More from author