After a court in Qatar pronounced death sentences to eight former Indian Navy personnel, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Friday stressed that India will fight a legal battle to bring back all officers. Addressing a press conference, BJP national spokesperson Ajay Alok said the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) is already looking into the matter.
"India has duly placed its stand also on the issue. We are surprised to see that such things also happen. We will fight a legal battle in this matter. The International Court of Justice is there. I think the government of India will place its stand and we will definitely succeed in bringing them back from there," Alok added.
Tharoor expresses shock over verdict
Meanwhile, senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor also expressed shock over the Qatar court's verdict and said the entire case is shrouded in "mystery and opacity". "Shocked to learn that Qatar has passed a death sentence on eight former Indian Navy officers. The details of the entire case are shrouded in mystery & opacity. Trust @MEAIndia & @PMOIndia will act immediately with the highest levels of the Qatar government to support an appeal and bring them home," he wrote on 'X'.
Accusation against Indian Navy personnel
Earlier on Thursday (October 26), eight former Indian Navy personnel were given the death penalty by the Court of First Instance of Qatar. The verdict was described as "deeply shocking" by India and it vowed to explore all legal options in the matter. In August 2022, the Indian nationals were detained on suspicion of "espionage." They were working with a private company Al Dahra.
What MEA has said on the case?
"We have initial information that the Court of First Instance of Qatar has today passed a judgement in the case involving eight Indian employees of Al Dahra company. We are deeply shocked by the verdict of the 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 MEA said on Thursday.
The MEA said it will continue to extend all consular and legal assistance to the Indians. "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 said in a statement.
(With inputs from agencies)
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