New Delhi, March 23 India is extending all possible assistance to Amit Gupta, an Indian citizen from Gujarat's Vadodara, who has been wrongfully detained in Qatar for allegedly stealing data for which there is an ongoing investigation, people familiar with the matter said.
Gupta, a senior employee of the IT firm Tech Mahindra, was detained by Qatari authorities on January 1, his mother Pushpa Gupta told the media in Vadodara.
Gupta's father said he was detained by Qatar's state security.
The Indian embassy in Qatar is aware of the detention of Gupta by Qatari authorities in relation to an ongoing investigation, the people said on condition of anonymity.
Gupta’s family insists that he is innocent and has been falsely accused of data theft. They are demanding his urgent release and have sought the intervention of the Prime Minister’s Office.
"Our embassy continues to provide all possible assistance in the matter and is closely following the case," one of the people said, without giving details of the case or the charges against Gupta.
The Embassy has been in touch with Gupta's family, the lawyer representing him and Qatari authorities on a regular basis, the people said.
Gupta's mother said she had gone to Qatar and met the Indian ambassador there.
She quoted the envoy as saying that there had been no "positive response" so far in relation to Gupta's case.
BJP MP Hemang Joshi told the media that Gupta, a resident of Vadodara, had been working for Tech Mahindra in Qatar for the past 10 years.
He was detained by Qatari security personnel and taken into custody, Joshi said.
"His parents had gone to Qatar for a month and tried to meet him but they did not succeed," the BJP MP added.
This is the second instance since 2022 involving the detention of an Indian in Qatar.
Eight former Indian Navy personnel, including highly decorated officers, were detained in 2022 and subsequently sentenced to death in 2023. Their sentences were commuted by a Qatari court and they were freed on the orders of the Qatari Emir in February 2024.
--IANS
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