The brother of Reprieve client Jagtar Singh Johal has said he is putting his faith in the UK Prime Minister to bring Jagtar home, ahead of talks between Sir Keir Starmer and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is in London to sign a landmark, free trade agreement.
Starmer has “recognised that Jagtar is arbitrarily detained,” Gurpreet told the Independent. Foreign Secretary David Lammy has said that “resolving the case is a priority for this government.”
Gurpreet added: “Over the last eight years, I’ve grown very tired of fine words and weak excuses for a lack of action, while my brother grows old in prison. The time is now – it would be devastating if the Prime Minister lets this golden opportunity slip away.”
Reprieve’s interim deputy executive director Dan Dolan told the Independent that it should be a priority for Keir Starmer to secure Jagtar’s release and return to Britain:
“Trying him again for the same crime, on the same evidence, is prohibited in India’s constitution and in international law. This is a clear cut case of double jeopardy and it is in everyone’s interests to see it resolved. This week’s talks are a rare chance to make progress at the very highest level.”
