FOREIGN Secretary James Cleverly has refused to commit to seeking the release of Scot Jagtar Singh Johal from an Indian prison in what his family say is a “backwards step” in the fight for his freedom.
Johal – an active blogger and Sikh human rights campaigner - was in Punjab in Northern India in 2017 when his family say he was arrested and bundled into an unmarked car. He says he was then tortured for days, including with electrocution, and has remained in detention since then.
In May, he was formally charged with conspiracy to commit murder and being a member of a terrorist gang and now faces the death penalty. The charges rely on his forced confession under torture and are not supported by credible evidence, say human rights groups Reprieve and REDRESS.
