Detention of Jagtar Singh Johal: letter to UK Government

To: Prime Minister Rishi Sunak
From: First Minister Humza Yousaf

I met Gurpreet Singh Johal the brother of Jagtar Singh Johal on 6 June 2023.

Jagtar, born in Scotland and from Dumbarton, was arrested on 4 November 2017 in Northern India and has been accused of terrorist activity, including involvement in the murder of Hindu nationalist leader Ravinder Gosain in 2015. He has been detained since then, with a trial only recently proceeding.

Gurpreet has led the campaign for his brother’s release and has met with the UK Government previously. Jagtar has now been imprisoned in India for over 2,000 days. In May 2022, the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention concluded that Jagtar Singh Johal had been arbitrarily detained and his detention breached international human rights law. The clear recommendation of the report was that Jagtar Singh Johal should be immediately released. Yet Jagtar remains in prison.

I am therefore writing to ask that you make a direct approach to the Government of India to ask for Jagtar’s immediate release in line with the UN Working Group’s unequivocal recommendation. This would give the family the reassurance of knowing that the UK Government is prioritising the protection of a citizen who has been wrongfully imprisoned.