by LAUREN CODLING
BRITISH politicians are lobbying the UK government and the Indian High Commission to help a Scottish Sikh man who was last week sent to judicial custody in India.
Jagtar Singh Johal, also known as Jaggi, was detained in Jalandhar, Punjab, on November 4.
He was picked up by plain-clothed police officers who allegedly put a bag over his head and transported him in a van. He was sent to judicial custody last Friday (17).
The 30-year-old was in Punjab with his new bride and family after reportedly celebrating his recent wedding. His family left the country on November 1, while Johal and his wife stayed on in Punjab.
Johal, from Dumbarton in Scotland, has not yet been charged with any crime and there are claims he was physically tortured while in custody.
SNP (Scottish National Party) politician Martin Docherty-Hughes and the local representative for west Dunbartonshire asked foreign secretary Boris Johnson in parliament on Tuesday (21) whether the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) was working to assist Jahal.
The MP also wrote to prime minister Theresa May on Monday (20), urging her to meet him and Johal’s family to discuss the “extremely worrying” situation.
May said on Monday that she was aware of the “concerns” regarding Johal and confirmed that FCO representatives were pursuing the case.
When contacted by Eastern Eye on Tuesday (21), the FCO confirmed that consular staff in New Delhi had met Johal and also told his family that he had access to a lawyer.
Regarding the allegations of torture, an FCO spokesperson said they took the concerns “very seriously” and when considering how to act, they would avoid any action that may cause any further risk to the person affected.
Meanwhile, protests concerning Johal’s detainment spread on social media, with the hashtag #FreeJaggiNow trending. Hundreds of Sikhs, including Labour MP Preet Gill, protested outside the foreign office last Thursday (16), seeking justice for Johal.
Gill, the representative for Edgbaston Birmingham and chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group for Sikhs, has been supporting Johal’s family since the incident. She described them as being “worried” and “distraught” concerning Johal’s situation.
She told Eastern Eye: “[The family] are distraught because of what has happened and the circumstances. They feel that the campaign has had immense support. They can’t believe how the community has come together to support this cause.”
Gill, who was due to bring up the case with the Indian high commissioner YK Sinha on Wednesday (22) after Eastern Eye went to press on Tuesday, confirmed she was one of many MPs who have emailed foreign secretary Boris Johnson requesting an urgent meeting.
She believes if evidence against Johal has been gathered by Indian authorities, it should be made public – and if it indicates Johal has participated in illegal activities in the UK, he should be brought back to this country.
“If there is evidence in terms of online activities while in the UK, the question has got to be surely then he should be extradited back to England and let him be tried here based on that evidence,” she said. “I think that is absolutely the right way to do this unless you’re saying you have other information suggesting something else.”
Davinder Singh, a principal advisor to the Sikh Federation, said the organisation has been aware of the situation since Johal’s brother Gurpreet, who works as a solicitor, reached out to Docherty-Hughes on November 4.
He confirmed to Eastern Eye that Johal’s passport had been given to the British high commissioner in India on November 8, on his brother’s instructions.
Singh, who claims to have seen a copy of the passport, said it clearly shows Johal had visited Punjab in April this year, spending seven weeks there when he was engaged.
He further alleged that Johal’s family (who were in India for his wedding) were threatened by police in India to hand over his passport.
“[The family] had phone calls from India, supposedly from Indian police officers, who told them if they didn’t get [Johal’s] passport, then they were going to get to their children in England and they would also be [jailed],” Singh said.
His claims could not be verified.
Johal, who apparently runs a hotel in the UK and is self-employed, has made allegations to his lawyer that he has suffered from electrically-induced torture to his genitals.
A request for an independent medical examination was rejected by the Indian courts last Friday (17).
“If someone said they have been tortured, and you haven’t tortured him, would you not give him an independent medical examination and that be the end of it?” Singh said. “According to him, he has been physically tortured but mentally, can you imagine? [It] must be immense.”
The Indian High Commission did not respond to requests for a comment.
Bob Blackman MP speaks during the event