Qatar Court Releases Eight Indian Navy Veterans Detained on Espionage Charges

All eight former Indian Navy personnel detained in Qatar have been released, the Indian Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) confirmed on Monday. Of the eight former Navy officers, seven have already returned to India, marking a significant development in a case that sparked diplomatic tensions.

The capital punishment, initially handed down, was commuted to an extended prison term following diplomatic intervention by New Delhi. The MEA has welcomed the decision of the Qatar court, lauding the homecoming of the released ex-Indian Navy men.

The Union government released an official statement welcoming the decision to set the veteran officers free, saying, The Government of India welcomes the release of eight Indian nationals working for the Dahra Global company who were detained in Qatar. Seven out of the eight of them have returned to India. We appreciate the decision by the Amir of the State of Qatar to enable the release and home-coming of these nationals.

The eight Indian nationals had been imprisoned in Qatar since October 2022 on allegations of spying on a submarine programme. They were sentenced to death by a Qatar court on undisclosed charges.

Previously, the Qatari Court had commuted the death penalty sentence of these individuals, who were arrested last year in the Dahra Global case, as confirmed by the Ministry of External Affairs in a press statement. The sentence has now been reduced to jail terms.

Describing the judgement, the Ministry of External Affairs had said, We have noted the verdict today of the Court of Appeal of Qatar in the Dahra Global case, in which the sentences have been reduced.

The Ministry of External Affairsalso said that the detailed judgement in the case is awaited and are in close touch with the legal team in Qatar.