Gli ambasciatori Ashok Sajjanhar, Suresh K Goel e Robinder Sachdev
Nuova Delhi: After a Qatar court commuted the death sentence of eight Indian ex-Navy personnel, foreign affairs expert Robinder Sachdev hailed India’s diplomacy and said that the new verdict by the Qatari court is a big relief for the arrested personnel and their families.
“No doubt, you see diplomacy has also worked. It shows Prime Minister Modi met the mayor of Qatar on the sidelines of the CoP28 which was being held in Dubai recently. So this would have been certainly brought up by the PM with the mayor of Qatar,” he said.
He added, “The judgment by the Qatari court is indeed a huge, huge relief for the families in India. At the same time, there is still some distance ahead because what has happened, is whether the court has commuted or instead of the death sentence has handed some other judgment, which we do at least. As of now, the question will be what is the judgment that the court has now announced?.”
He said further, “Yes, we understand that the death sentence is no longer in the picture, which is a huge relief. But what else is, because the point is that if the court has kind of judged this as a different category of an episode, then is it a five-year sentence, a ten-year sentence, a 20-year sentence? How long would that sentence be? That is one. But the hope we have is that whatever the sentence in the coming days and months, that sentence could perhaps also be reduced so that we have these sailors back home as soon as possible.”
Additionally, Former diplomat Suresh K Goel also appreciated the Indian government’s efforts which resulted in commuting the sentence of Indian naval officers and hoped that if government could ensure their transfer to India in the coming days.
He stated, “After the efforts by the govt, their death sentence has been commuted, hope that in the coming days, with more efforts the sentence reduces further or if they can be transferred to India so that they can serve their rest of the sentence here…efforts will continue.”
Moreover, Former Diplomat, Ashok Sajjanhar said that the commuted sentence is a “welcome development” and added that this is not the end but a need to ensure that all officers would be brought back home safely.
He noted, ” It is a very welcome development, the whole country was really on an edge…the govt and all those who were involved with it were working very hard to ensure that this sentence is not carried out. This is the first positive development…but of course, this is not the end…we need to ensure that all these officers are brought back home safely with full dignity and all the charges against them are removed.”
Giovedì la Corte del Qatar ha commutato la condanna a morte di otto ex ufficiali della marina indiana arrestati lo scorso anno nel caso Dahra Global, ha dichiarato il Ministero degli Affari Esteri in un comunicato stampa. La pena è stata ora ridotta al carcere.
Describing the judgement, the Ministry of External Affairs 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.”
La MEA ha anche affermato che si attende il giudizio dettagliato sul caso e che è in stretto contatto con il team legale in Qatar.
La MEA ha aggiunto: “Si attende il giudizio dettagliato. Siamo in stretto contatto con il team legale e con i membri della famiglia per decidere i prossimi passi. Il nostro Ambasciatore in Qatar e altri funzionari erano presenti oggi in Corte d'Appello, insieme ai familiari. Siamo stati al loro fianco fin dall’inizio della vicenda e continueremo a estendere tutta l’assistenza consolare e legale. Continueremo anche ad affrontare la questione con le autorità del Qatar”.
Gli otto cittadini indiani sono imprigionati in Qatar dall'ottobre 2022 e accusati di spionaggio su un programma sottomarino. Il personale della marina in pensione è stato condannato a morte da un tribunale del Qatar con accuse che non sono state ancora rese pubbliche ufficialmente.
All'inizio di questo mese, la MEA ha informato che sul caso si sono svolte due udienze.
“Ci sono state due udienze. Abbiamo presentato ricorso alle famiglie e i detenuti hanno avuto un ultimo appello. Da allora si sono svolte due udienze. Uno era il 30 novembre e l'altro il 23 novembre. Penso che la prossima udienza sarà presto”, ha detto Bagchi.
Inoltre, secondo una dichiarazione del Ministero degli Affari Esteri, il Tribunale di primo grado del Qatar ha emesso una sentenza contro di loro.
Il portavoce della MEA ha anche sottolineato il recente incontro avvenuto tra il primo ministro Narendra Modi e l'emiro del Qatar, lo sceicco Tamim Bin Hamad, e ha affermato che hanno avuto una buona conversazione sulle relazioni bilaterali complessive.
Il primo ministro Narendra Modi ha incontrato l’emiro del Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, a margine del vertice COP28 a Dubai e ha discusso del partenariato bilaterale e del “benessere della comunità indiana” che vive in Qatar.