August 23, 2022
Cited article by Al Jazeera
HRRC calls for the immediate release of Jagtar Singh Johal and demands the UK government to review its methods of providing foreign governments with information on British citizens. The alleged treatment of Johal is appalling and his arrest is reported to be due to his religion, and being a minority in India.
Article Summary
Human rights groups are accusing UK spy agencies of sharing information with India which recently led to the arrest and subsequent torture of a Sikh blogger from Scotland. The blogger, Jagtar Singh Johal, has been imprisoned in India for over four years under the accusation of a "terror plot", and charged with conspiracy to commit murder. Two organizations, Reprieve and Redress, in a joint statement said they identified information suggesting that MI5 and MI6 were authorized to share information on the UK citizen with India.
Reprieve and Redress also state that when Johal was arrested in 2017, he was at his own wedding in India and had a sack thrown over his head. No word was heard from him for 10 days, and he reportedly suffered from electric shock torture until he signed a coerced confession. Additionally, the NGO's report shows evidence suggesting the UK government shared information on the British citizen despite the significant risk of torture, mistreatment, and the death penalty. The groups are calling for a full review of how the UK government responds to British citizens being tortured abroad.