Qatari court reduces death sentence for 8 ex-Indian Navy personnel to 3-25 yrs in jail

A Qatari court on Thursday 28 Dec  commuted the death sentence given to eight former Indian Navy personnel earlier this year and sentenced them to prison for varying durations ranging from three years to 25 years, people familiar with the matter said.

The Indian side will work with the legal team to explore options, including the mounting of a further appeal against the prison terms given to the eight men

The ruling by Qatar’s Court of Appeal came during the hearing of an appeal by the families of the eight men, who were detained in August 2022 on undeclared charges. Reports have suggested they were accused of espionage, though Qatari and Indian authorities haven’t provided details of the charges against them.

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The external affairs ministry said in a brief statement that Qatar’s Court of Appeal had “reduced” the sentences given to the eight men – Captains Navtej Gill and SaurabhVasisht, Commanders Purnendu Tiwari, Amit Nagpal, SK Gupta, BK Verma and SugunakarPakala, and sailor Ragesh – but provided no details. “The detailed judgement is awaited,” the statement said.

The people cited above said the Qatari court had commuted the death sentence of all eight men and given them prison terms of varying duration. “The death sentence is off the table. The prison terms vary from a few years to several years,” one of the people said on condition of anonymity.

The commutation of the death sentence makes it possible for India to invoke a 2015 agreement with Qatar on the transfer of sentenced persons. The pact allows citizens of India and Qatar who have been convicted and sentenced for criminal offences to serve their sentences in their home country.

The agreement – signed during a visit to India by the emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, in March 2015 – is not applicable to persons sentenced to death.

The external affairs ministry said the Indian side is in close touch with the legal team and the families of the eight men to “decide on the next steps”.

The Indian ambassador to Qatar and other officials were present in the Court of Appeal with family members when the verdict was delivered on Thursday.

The people said the Indian side will work with the legal team to explore options, including the mounting of a further appeal against the prison terms given to the men. “This is all part of a process and it will continue,” the person cited above said.

The eight men were employees of a subsidiary of Oman-based Dahra Engineering & Security Services, which provided training and other services to Qatar’s armed forces. The subsidiary was shut down in May this year.