NEW DELHI: A Qatari court on Thursday announced the death penalty for eight Indian naval veterans who have been in judicial custody for over 14 months.
The eight, all employees of Al Dahra company, were taken into custody in August last year in an alleged case of espionage.
"We have initial information that the Court of First Instance of Qatar has today passed a judgment in the case involving 8 Indian employees of AI Dahra company,’’ Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said in a statement.
"We are deeply shocked by the verdict of the death penalty and are awaiting the detailed judgment. We are in touch with the family members and the legal team and we are exploring all legal options,’’ MEA added.
India attaches high importance to this case and has been following it closely.
"We will continue to extend all consular and legal assistance. We will also take up the verdict with Qatari authorities,’’ said the MEA.
"Due to the confidential nature of the proceedings of this case, it would not be appropriate to make any further comment at this juncture," the MEA added.
The eight veterans are 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.
They were picked up for questioning by Qatar’s Ministry of Interior on August 30, 2022 and then kept in solitary confinement before being charge sheeted (details of which have not yet been made public). The naval veterans were then clubbed and permitted to live on a twin sharing basis.
In October 2022, the Qatari authorities had asked the naval veterans to go back home and pack their bags to return to India, but by the time they returned with their bags there was a change of heart and they were sent back to their solitary confinement cells. The bags that these veterans had brought with them are in their possession in their cells.
The seventh hearing on the charges that have been levelled against officers was held on October 3. On October 1, India’s Ambassador in Doha and Deputy Head of Mission met the eight naval veterans. India has been providing legal assistance to the officers and says it will continue to seek justice for them.