Qatar court hands down death penalty for eight Indians

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NEW DELHI, Oct 26, (Agencies): A Qatar court has delivered the death penalty to eight Indian nationals who were detained in the country last year, as confirmed by the Indian government in a statement issued on Thursday. The announcement of this verdict has left the Indian authorities deeply shocked. The statement further mentioned that India is actively pursuing all available legal avenues in response to this situation.

To date, neither the Indian nor Qatari governments have officially disclosed the charges brought against these eight men. The Indian Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) shared initial information regarding the case, revealing that the Court of First Instance of Qatar has issued a judgment concerning eight Indian employees of Al Dahra company. The MEA emphasized its continuous engagement with the families and legal representatives of the individuals involved, with a commitment to exploring all legal remedies.

The MEA conveyed that this matter holds significant importance for India, as they have closely monitored the developments. The statement reaffirmed the Indian government’s dedication to providing consular support and legal assistance to the detainees and expressed intentions to discuss the verdict with Qatari authorities.

Due to the confidential nature of the ongoing legal proceedings, the MEA refrained from providing further commentary at this juncture. The eight Indian citizens have been detained in Qatar since October 2022. Requests for comments from India’s foreign ministry spokesperson were unanswered at the time of this report.

The government’s statement issued on Thursday also mentioned that, given the confidentiality of the proceedings, additional comments would be deemed inappropriate. Earlier, Indian foreign ministry officials, including Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, noted that the exact nature of the charges against these eight individuals remains unclear.

New Delhi had secured consular access to the detainees and had been actively working to secure their release. The eight Indian nationals faced their first trial in late March.

Meetu Bhargava, the sister of one of the detained individuals residing in Gwalior, reached out to the Indian government to seek assistance in bringing her brother back to India. In a social media post on June 8, she made a heartfelt appeal to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, emphasizing the urgency of their return.

India hosts a significant population of over 800,000 citizens living and working in Qatar.

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