New Delhi: Qatar has launched eight Indian ex-navy officers who have been working for a personal firm and have been sentenced to loss of life by a Qatari court docket in October 2023. Seven of them have returned to India, whereas one is predicted to hitch them quickly. The discharge got here after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi met with Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani on the sidelines of the COP 28 summit in Dubai on December 1, 2023. The 2 leaders mentioned bilateral relations and regional points, and the Emir of Qatar assured PM Modi of his private intervention within the case of the Indian residents.
The Indian authorities welcomed the discharge and expressed its appreciation for the choice of the Emir of Qatar. In a press launch, the Ministry of Exterior Affairs mentioned, “The Authorities of India welcomes the discharge of eight Indian nationals working for the Dahra International firm who have been detained in Qatar. Seven out of the eight of them have returned to India. We admire the choice by the Amir of the State of Qatar to allow the discharge and home-coming of those nationals.”
The eight Indian residents have been arrested in Qatar in September 2022 on costs of espionage and sabotage. They have been working for the Dahra International firm, which offers safety and upkeep companies to Qatar’s Ministry of Defence. They have been accused of leaking delicate info and inflicting harm to Qatar’s defence installations.
On October 26, 2023, a Qatari court docket sentenced them to loss of life after a trial that was criticized by human rights teams and the Indian authorities for lack of transparency and due course of. The Indian authorities had lodged a powerful protest and sought consular entry to the detainees. The Indian ambassador to Qatar, Vipul, was capable of meet them on December 3, 2023, after the intervention of the Emir of Qatar.
The case was taken up by the Court docket of Attraction in Qatar, which heard the arguments of the defence legal professionals and the prosecution on November 20 and 23, 2023. On December 28, 2023, the Court docket of Attraction overturned the loss of life sentence and ordered the discharge of the eight Indian residents.
The discharge of the Indian residents is a serious diplomatic success for India and demonstrates the sturdy ties between the 2 international locations. Qatar is a crucial companion for India within the Gulf area, with bilateral commerce exceeding $10 billion and greater than 700,000 Indians dwelling and dealing in Qatar. The 2 international locations have additionally cooperated on vitality, safety, and counter-terrorism points.
