Lawyers for Jagtar Singh Johal, of Dumbarton, Scotland, say he was tortured, including electrocuted, after being illegally arrested in Punjab in 2017, where he had traveled for his wedding. The Reprieve campaign group, which represents him, says it has uncovered documents suggesting MI5 and MI6 tipped off Indian authorities about Johal. “No one should ever be tortured, especially not with the help of the UK government,” he said in a report on the case. Johal’s brother Gurpreet Singh Johal, a barrister and Labor councilor in West Dumbartonshire, confirmed he was taking legal action against the UK government. He tweeted: “Jagtar is taking the UK government to court for his illegal detention and torture in India. If this can happen to my brother, it could happen to any Briton traveling abroad.” Archie Bland and Nimo Omer take you to the top stories and what they mean, free every weekday morning Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain information about charities, online advertising and content sponsored by external parties. For more information, see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and Google’s Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. This month, Johal’s lawyers filed a high court case against the Foreign Office, the Home Office and the attorney general, according to the BBC. It claims UK intelligence illegally shared information with Indian authorities when there was a threat of torture. Reprieve is calling on the UK Foreign Secretary to intervene. He said: “As foreign secretary and possible future prime minister, Liz Truss has a duty to right the wrongs of the foreign ministers before her and, in good faith, to bring Jagtar home and reunite him with his family. prohibiting the sharing of information where there is a real risk of torture or the death penalty; [and] give torture survivors the right to know if the UK is complicit in their abuse.” He added: “Our government should be protecting us, not exposing us to torture and the death penalty.” Boris Johnson acknowledged this year that Indian authorities had arbitrarily detained Johal, adding that the UK government had consistently raised concerns about his treatment and his right to a fair trial. After four and a half years in custody, Johal was formally charged with conspiracy to commit murder and being a member of a terrorist gang, for which he faces a possible death penalty. Indian authorities say the charges are related to Sikh nationalism. He denies any wrongdoing. The Foreign Office said it would not comment on an ongoing court case.
