October 2022
Dear Constituent,
Thank you for contacting me about Jagtar Singh Johal.
I would like to assure you that Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) staff have been working hard to provide consular assistance to Mr Johal and his family, and that representations are regularly made by the British High Commissioner directly to the Government of India on behalf of Mr Johal.
The Government takes the opinion of the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention on Mr Johal very seriously, and has raised allegations of torture and mistreatment, and the right to a fair trial, when citing concerns about Mr Johal's case with the Government of India at official and ministerial levels.
I know HMG will continue to look to raise concerns about Mr Johal's case at all appropriate opportunities, such as when the Prime Minister raised Mr Johal's case directly with Prime Minister Modi on his visit to India on 22 April, and when the Foreign Secretary raised Mr Johal's detention with India's Minister of External Affairs, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, on 31 March 2022.
Mr Johal's welfare continues to be a priority, as is ensuring his ongoing access to his legal representatives. Consular staff have attended a number of hearings in Mr Johal's case in an observer capacity, and did so on 2, 3, 4, 7, and 9 June. Lord Ahmad, as the lead FCDO Minister in Mr Johal's case, has also met Mr Johal's family and constituency MP, Martin Docherty-Hughes, to discuss his case on a number of occasions.
I would like to be absolutely clear that the Government condemns torture of any kind. It is a priority for the UK to combat it wherever and whenever it occurs. Where concerns exist over the possible use of torture, my colleagues in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office will never be afraid to make their opposition known at the highest levels.
I appreciate that this is a desperately difficult and distressing time for Mr Johal, his family and many in the Sikh community, and I will continue to follow his case very closely.
With best wishes.
Kind regards,
Jonathan Lord MP
Member of Parliament for Woking