Scots man detained in India Jagtar Singh Johal granted bail, says family
Jagtar Singh Johal, from Dumbarton, was arrested in 2017 in connection with alleged terror offences.
The brother of a Scot who has been arbitrarily detained in India for almost nine years has welcomed an Indian court's decision to grant him bail, describing it as a moment the family has "fought so hard" for.
Jagtar Singh Johal was arrested after his wedding in Punjab in northern India in November 2017, since which time he has been held over alleged terror offences without conviction.
The central allegation is that he transferred money in the knowledge the money would be used to fund a series of attacks against Hindu nationalists and other religious leaders.
However, he and his family have long maintained his innocence, and claim he was subjected to a coerced confession before being confronted with a slew of further charges.
The Sikh activist, from Dumbarton, also claims to have been beaten and tortured by Indian police, alleging officers attached electrodes to his ear, nipples and genitals, and threatened to burn him alive.
Amid an ongoing campaign to secure his release from prison, Mr Johal has now been granted bail by the High Court in Delhi, according to his lawyers. It comes 18 months after he was acquitted on all charges in the first case against him.
Mr Johal’s brother, Gurpreet, who has consistently lobbied the UK government to take action, said he expected he would be released from prison once the relevant paperwork had been completed, describing it as “time to bring him home.”
He said: “The past two years have been an expensive rollercoaster, contesting bails at the Supreme Court and back to the High Court. I had a long, sleepless night knowing that the decision would be made this morning. Now, all I can think about is Jagtar walking out of prison. We have waited so long and fought so hard for this moment.
“Whenever the evidence against Jagtar is tested in court, judges find what we’ve said all along, which is that there isn’t any. How long will this sick joke of a legal process be allowed to continue? We’re obviously delighted that Jagtar will soon be released, but he won’t be truly free until he is back in Dumbarton, with his wife and family.”
Douglas McAllister, the Labour MP for West Dunbartonshire, said: “I am so relieved to hear this wonderful news this morning. After years of campaigning by his brother Gurpreet and family, with the help of Reprieve we finally have the breakthrough we so longed for.
“We obviously are still waiting to understand the terms of the bail conditions but at last he will be freed from an Indian prison. As MP for West Dunbartonshire I will continue to work with Jagtar’s family and team to push for his return home to Dumbarton and his family where he belongs.
“We now need the swift conclusion to all his outstanding cases. Let’s bring him home!”
The significant development comes after judges challenged prosecutors in the eight remaining cases against Mr Johal - all of which essentially duplicate the case in which he has already been acquitted - to present evidence to justify his continued detention. Mr Johal’s legal team said they were unable to do so.
While the order from the judges makes clear that Mr Jagtar should be released on bail, the 39 year-old remains in custody at present while his bail conditions are confirmed. The court must also confirm the amounts which must be posted as a bond.
Mr Johal had already been granted bail in two cases. The judges were considering seven outstanding bail applications, with bail now been granted in all cases
Dan Dolan, deputy executive director of the legal charity, Reprieve, which has been working to expedite Mr Johal’s release, said the judgement was welcome, but stressed the need to “watch closely” so as to ensure the order is actually implemented and is not “obstructed.”
He said the bail conditions were likely to be “onerous,” adding: “We must also remember that Jagtar will still be facing the death penalty in eight cases against him, despite these cases essentially duplicating trumped-up charges on which he has already been fully acquitted.
“Jagtar was targeted by the Indian authorities for speaking out against human rights abuses. The legal process is the punishment and until it’s over and Jagtar is back home, he continues to pay a heavy price for standing up for what’s right. It is time for the UK government to do what is needed to resolve this case and bring Jagtar back home.”
Chris Esdaile, senior legal advisor at the human rights organisation, Redress, which has also been campaigning for Mr Johal’s release, added: “This is a welcome development, but it can’t undo the intolerable suffering caused by nine years of arbitrary detention without a fair and timely resolution. The need for accountability for the allegations of torture and the deeply flawed proceedings against Jagtar remains urgent.”
Bhai Amrik Singh, chair of the Sikh Federation’s strategy board, said the decision to grant Mr Johal bail moved things “one step closer to getting him home.”
Mr Johal’s continued imprisonment was recognised by a United Nations panel as arbitrary detention in 2022. In April, a group of ten UN legal experts called on India to release him immediately, highlighting the “profound miscarriage of justice” in his case, and warning that he was enduring “unlawful suffering” and a form of “psychological torture” as a result of the prolonged uncertainty.
In June, meanwhile, scores of MPs and two peers from across the political divide at Westminster wrote to foreign secretary Yvette Cooper, urging her to take “much stronger action” to secure the release of Mr Johal.
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