jaggi johal
- 2 years ago
Breaking news "MI5 and MI6 spies supplied information that led to the torture of a British citizen in India
MI5 and MI6 spies supplied information that led to the torture of a British citizen in India, apparently in breach of Britain’s commitment to human rights.
Jagtar Singh Johal has been arbitrarily detained in India for five years and faces the death penalty over his alleged role in a Sikh extremist group. His case has been shrouded in mystery since his arrest in Punjab in 2017.
Now lawyers for Johal have lodged a complaint at the High Court after identifying his case among anonymised details published in the annual report by the UK’s investigatory powers commissioner. It lays out how MI5 and MI6 passed information to a foreign power about a British national who was detained and tortured.
The details precisely matched those of Johal’s case, revealing what his lawyers had long suspected was the hand of British intelligence in his abuse at the hands of the Indian authorities.
Johal was arrested over his alleged role in killings by the Khalistan Liberation Force, a banned terrorist organisation. In a letter to Sir Keir Starmer in June, Boris Johnson acknowledged that Johal’s detention was arbitrary, reflecting the finding of a UN panel that concluded the same a month earlier.
Johnson defended the UK government’s approach to the detention and said that ministers had consistently raised concerns about Johal’s treatment and right to a fair trial.
The revelation that it was information passed from Britain to India that led to Johal’s arrest returns the focus to his own government. Johnson was the foreign secretary at the time of Johal’s arrest. Insiders say the sign-off on the transfer of such information could only have been given by the foreign secretary.
Gurpreet Singh Johal, Jagtar’s brother, said: “I never imagined the scenes I’d seen in horror movies of people being abducted by a foreign government and violently tortured could become a reality for someone in my family. When it did, I expected our government would do everything in its power to save my brother. The twist is that not only has our government abandoned one of its own citizens, it’s actively betrayed him.”
He said that his brother’s only “crime” was writing blogs exposing the Indian government’s “mistreatment” of Sikhs. He added: “The UK should be championing free speech around the world, not assisting repressive regimes to torture and lock up British nationals who dare to criticise them. We need answers and accountability to make sure no other British family is put through this living hell.”
Johal, who comes from Dumbarton, was arrested after travelling to Punjab in northern India for his wedding. Attempts to visit him in Delhi’s Tihar jail have been rejected on Covid grounds.
Johal has filed with the High Court a petition challenging the intelligence services’ decision to share his information in the knowledge of his likely treatment by the Indian security service, including tort
MI5 and MI6 spies supplied information that led to the torture of a British citizen in India, apparently in breach of Britain’s commitment to human rights.
Jagtar Singh Johal has been arbitrarily detained in India for five years and faces the death penalty over his alleged role in a Sikh extremist group. His case has been shrouded in mystery since his arrest in Punjab in 2017.
Now lawyers for Johal have lodged a complaint at the High Court after identifying his case among anonymised details published in the annual report by the UK’s investigatory powers commissioner. It lays out how MI5 and MI6 passed information to a foreign power about a British national who was detained and tortured.
The details precisely matched those of Johal’s case, revealing what his lawyers had long suspected was the hand of British intelligence in his abuse at the hands of the Indian authorities.
Johal was arrested over his alleged role in killings by the Khalistan Liberation Force, a banned terrorist organisation. In a letter to Sir Keir Starmer in June, Boris Johnson acknowledged that Johal’s detention was arbitrary, reflecting the finding of a UN panel that concluded the same a month earlier.
Johnson defended the UK government’s approach to the detention and said that ministers had consistently raised concerns about Johal’s treatment and right to a fair trial.
The revelation that it was information passed from Britain to India that led to Johal’s arrest returns the focus to his own government. Johnson was the foreign secretary at the time of Johal’s arrest. Insiders say the sign-off on the transfer of such information could only have been given by the foreign secretary.
Gurpreet Singh Johal, Jagtar’s brother, said: “I never imagined the scenes I’d seen in horror movies of people being abducted by a foreign government and violently tortured could become a reality for someone in my family. When it did, I expected our government would do everything in its power to save my brother. The twist is that not only has our government abandoned one of its own citizens, it’s actively betrayed him.”
He said that his brother’s only “crime” was writing blogs exposing the Indian government’s “mistreatment” of Sikhs. He added: “The UK should be championing free speech around the world, not assisting repressive regimes to torture and lock up British nationals who dare to criticise them. We need answers and accountability to make sure no other British family is put through this living hell.”
Johal, who comes from Dumbarton, was arrested after travelling to Punjab in northern India for his wedding. Attempts to visit him in Delhi’s Tihar jail have been rejected on Covid grounds.
Johal has filed with the High Court a petition challenging the intelligence services’ decision to share his information in the knowledge of his likely treatment by the Indian security service, including tort