Jagtar Singh Johal

That this House notes that Jagtar Singh Johal, a Sikh activist and resident of Dumbarton, will be marking his 37th birthday on 9 February, his sixth in arbitrary detention in India since being abducted from the street during his honeymoon by unidentified assailants who turned out to be undercover police agents on 4 November 2017; notes that during his incarceration it is alleged that he was tortured both physically and through electric shocks to his nipples and genitals, something which led him to signing a confession, a confession that has subsequently been used when filing charges against him; supports the ruling of the UN Working Group on arbitrary detention which in May 2022 gave its opinion that Jagtar’s detention was an arbitrary one; urges the Government to also support this opinion and do what it can to achieve Jagtar’s immediate release to ensure that his birthday will be marked, in person, at home with his family.