The Indian government on Oct 26 expressed shock over the news of the eight former Indian Navy personnel, who have been in custody in Qatar since last year, being awarded the death sentence, saying it will contest the order. 

“The court of first instance of Qatar has today (Oct 26) passed a judgement in the case involving 8 Indian employees of Al Dahra company. We are deeply shocked by the verdict of 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,” the external affairs ministry said in a statement. 

“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,” it added. 

Due to the confidential nature of proceedings of this case, it would not be appropriate to make any further comment at this juncture, the statement said further. 

The eight persons were arrested last year after being charged with spying for Israel by Qatar authorities. 

The men also include decorated officers who once commanded major Indian warships, and were working for a private firm that provided training and related services to Qatar’s armed forces. 

Their bail pleas were rejected numerous times and their detention extended by Qatari authorities. 

Who were the eight veterans?

According to the tweet of Major Surendra Poonia on the social media platform X, the eight Indian Navy veterans include:

Capt Navtej Singh Gill, Capt Birendra Kumar Verma, Capt Saurabh Vasisht, Cdr Amit Nagpal, Cdr Purnendu Tiwari, Cdr Sugunakar Pakala, Cdr Sanjeev Gupta, and Sailor Ragesh.

One of the veterans, Purnendra Tiwari was awarded the president’s gold medal for excellence when he graduated from the naval academy and later served as an instructor at the Defence Services Staff College (DSSC) at Wellington in Tamil Nadu, as per media reports.

A brief backdrop

Eight Indian Navy veterans were reportedly detained on Aug 30, 2022, and have been kept since in solitary confinement by Qatar’s intelligence agencies.

Qatari officials had reportedly refused to state the charges against the men, but there is some speculation that they were arrested for 'spying for Israel’.

The Indian embassy in Doha became aware of the arrest in mid-September.

(With inputs from IANS)

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