New Delhi: The fate of detained eight Indian Navy personnel charged with espionage continues to hang in the balance.
The Modi government mobilized the Indian Servicemen Movement (IESM) to write a letter to India’s External Affairs Minister Dr S. Jaishankar, seeking his intervention, in a bid to give the impression that detained officers are ex-servicemen, and have nothing to do with the allegation.
Copies of the letter have also been forwarded to Prime Minister Modi, Defence Minister and three services chiefs. The aim of the whole exercise is to make the Qatari government believe that the detained officers are not serving but former Navy personnel to avert embarrassment if a confession statement is made public by the Qatri government after the football gala.
As per information, the detained Navy personnel were RAW agents undercover of workers at Dahra Global Technologies and Consultancy Services in Doha, Qatar.
India had hidden their arrest, and the matter came to limelight only when the families of the Navy personnel disclosed on social media that they were picked up around midnight from their homes in Doha by the State Security Bureau, Ministry of Interior, Qatar, on August 30.
Later, Indian Ambassador to Qatar had to endorse the arrests.
Consular access was reportedly granted to the eight only once on October 3, when it came to be known that they are in solitary confinement.
The detained Indian Navy personnel have been identified as: Cdr Purnendu Tiwari, Capt Navtej Singh Gill, Cdr Birendra Kumar Verma, Capt Saurabh Vashisht, Cdr Sugnakar Pakala, Cdr Amit Nagpal, Cdr Sanjeev Gupta and Sailor Ragesh.
“Their release and repatriation at the earliest are desired,” the letter said, and feared that the eight personnel have confessed are about to confess the charge. , and the statement may be made public immediately after the football world cup.
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