Explained | All you need to know about Qatar's death penalty to 8 Indian Navy veterans

Eight former Indian Navy personnel working in Qatar, who were arrested in August last year, in an alleged case of espionage have been sentenced to death by a Qatar court on Thursday (October 26).

The ministry of external affairs called the judgement "shocking" but said it would not comment given the "confidential nature of proceedings". However, the MEA assured that it would contest the judgment.

Here are all the details about the case:

Who are the eight Indian Navy veterans?

The eight former Indian Navy personnel have been identified as Commander Purnendu Tiwari, Commander Sanjeev Gupta, Commander Sugunakar Pakala, Commander Amit Nagpal, Captain Navtej Singh Gill, Captain Saurabh Vasisht, Captain Birendra Kumar Verma, and sailor Ragesh Gopakumar.

All the eight officers had a distinguished service track record of up to 20 years in the Indian Navy. They had held important positions, and some of them were instructors in the navy.

Commander Tiwari was the managing director of the company. He was awarded the Pravasi Bharatiya Samman, the highest honour conferred on overseas Indians, in 2019. The Indian embassy in Doha had said that the award was given to Commander Tiwari for enhancing India's image abroad.

What were they doing in Qatar?

They were employed by Dahra Global Technologies and Consultancy Services, a company that provides defence services. It is owned by an Omani national, Khamis al-Ajmi, a retired squadron leader of the Royal Omani Air Force. He was also arrested along with the Indians, but was released in November last year.

The company provided training and related services to Qatar’s armed forces. Most of the arrested men were working for four to six years for Dahra at the time of their arrest.

Who arrested them? And when?

They were arrested by Qatar’s intelligence agency State Security Bureau in Doha in August 2022 and were kept in solitary confinement. Their trial began on March 29 this year.

When did the Indian embassy meet the accused?

The Indian embassy in Qatar learnt about their arrest only in mid-September last year, and the arrested men were allowed to speak to their families on September 30, 2022. The embassy personnel were allowed to meet them in October last year.

What are the charges against them?

The Qatar and the Indian governments have not made the charges public. They were mentioned during the court hearing. Media reports said that the men were charged with the offence of spying for Israel and leaked information about Qatar’s secret submarine deal with Italy. The submarines were considered to be advanced stealth technology.

Their families also were allegedly not informed of the formal charges against them.

Their bail petitions had been rejected several times and the verdict against them was pronounced by the Court of First Instance in Qatar on Thursday.

What is the Indian government’s response?

The MEA said on Thursday (October 26) after the verdict was pronounced: "We are deeply shocked by the verdict of 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. 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”.

The Central government has been maintaining that it was exploring legal channels to ensure the release of the eight arrested Indians.

Speaking about the charges in mid-October, the MEA spokesperson had admitted that "the charges were presented as part of the hearings" but that they wouldn’t like to get into the legal part of it.

"They have legal representation in court. We are now looking forward to what the court judgement is and we hope that they are able to return to India," MEA spokesperson had said on a positive note at that time.

What is the equation between India and Qatar?

India and Qatar have had friendly relations for many decades. There have been top-level exchanges by the two nations. The first official visit by an Indian prime minister to Qatar was in 2008 by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. This was followed by a visit to India by the Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani in 2015. Prime Minister Narendra Modi went to Qatar in 2016.

Trade relations between the two countries has seen robust growth over the years, with bilateral trade valued at $15 billion.

India and Qatar have significant achievements in defence cooperation, with the India-Qatar Defence Cooperation Agreement signed in 2008 and renewed in 2018.

However, recently, the ties have been rather strained, with Qatar demanding a public apology from India for a derogatory reference made by a BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma about the Prophet in June 2022. The Indian ambassador was summoned, and the BJP suspended Nupur Sharma to contain the damage.

The present case presents a significant diplomatic challenge for the Indian government, especially in the backdrop of the Israel-Hamas war and the fears of the conflict escalating in the region. Qatar is a strong supporter of the Palestinian cause, and was instrumental in mediating the release of two American hostages by the Hamas.

It is learnt that the families of the former Indian Navy personnel had filed a mercy plea to the Emir of Qatar, but it has not been confirmed.

Indian Opposition’s reaction

Congress MP Manish Tewari talking to ANI on the issue said, “Eight senior decorated officers of Indian Navy have been sentenced to death on charges which are still not known. I had asked in Lok Sabha what are the charges against them. It is astounding the cavalier manner in which NDA-BJP govt, Minister Jaishankar and his ministry have dealt with this issue. If anything happens to these 8 people, then their blood will be on the hands of NDA-BJP govt."