New Delhi/London/Bathinda: Taking note of the “long period of incarceration” and acquittal in one of the cases, Delhi high court on Friday granted bail to British citizen Jagtar Singh Johal, who is charged with targeted killings and conspiracy linked to Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF).News of his bail sparked celebrations at his home in Dumbarton, Scotland, and among UK-based activists who have been campaigning for his release under #FreeJaggiNow.His brother, Gurpreet Singh Johal, a solicitor who lives in Dumbarton, where Johal’s wife Gurpreet Kaur Johal, too lives, said: “The past two years have been an expensive rollercoaster, contesting bails at the Supreme Court and back to the high court in India. I had a long, sleepless night knowing that the decision would be made on Friday morning. Now, all I can think about is Jagtar walking out of prison. We have waited so long and fought so hard for this moment. Whenever the evidence against Jagtar is tested in court, judges find what we’ve said all along, which is that there isn’t any. We’re delighted that Jagtar will soon be released, but he won’t be truly free until he is back in Dumbarton, with his wife and family.”Johal’s MP Douglas McAllister, who has been campaigning for his release, described the news as “amazing” on Friday. “Now it’s time to bring him home,” he said.Scotland-born Johal, arrested soon after his wedding in 2017, was named as an accused in eight cases of attempted murder in Punjab and booked by National Investigation Agency under Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA). He was acquitted in one of the cases last year where the probe agency didn’t file an appeal.On Friday, a bench of Justices Navin Chawla and Ravinder Dudeja heard Johal’s bail appeals in the remaining seven matters together, and said: “We find that the appellant has remained in custody for more than eight years. Though the charges stand framed against the appellant… only 40 witnesses have so far been examined and we are informed that there are another 123 witnesses whose testimony is yet to be recorded… Trial is certainly not likely to conclude any time soon.”On NIA’s claim that Johal is a flight risk as he is a foreign national, HC said, “The liberty of the appellant cannot be curtailed only on this ground. We shall impose conditions that should ensure that he does not become a flight risk.”HC ordered Johal to surrender his passport and barred him from joining any WhatsApp group or other social media platforms where anti-national material is uploaded or circulated or propagated.HC rejected NIA’s claim that certain witnesses have alleged they were threatened and that, if released, Johal may influence the trial. “There are various accused who are facing trial, and no document has been produced before us to substantiate that the threats are in any manner emanating from the appellant or at his behest,” HC pointed out.NIA’s cases against Johal arise from a series of allegedly targeted murders and attempted murders in Ludhiana and Jalandhar districts of Punjab in 2016-2017. Two cases pertain to the killing of Amit Sharma, president of ‘Shri Hindu Takhat’ in Ludhiana in Jan 2017, and the attempted murder of Jagdish Kumar Gagneja, RSS vice president in Punjab, in Jalandhar in Aug 2016.The probe was transferred from Punjab Police to NIA after the offences were identified to be a part of a “transnational conspiracy”. NIA accused Johal of being an “active member” of the “terrorist gang” Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF).Gurpreet Singh Johal told BBC News on Friday: “It is a bittersweet moment. His wife was crying. We are still waiting for the order and a report. We don’t know the exact conditions of bail. We expect he won’t be allowed to leave India without permission and will have to pay a bond. But at last we see some light at the end of the tunnel that he will be at least at liberty.”Noting that Johal was acquitted of all charges in one case, Gurpreet said: “Jagtar is innocent and is arbitrarily detained. There is a lot more that has to be done from the UK govt. They have not done enough. Now, it is time to bring Jagtar home and this can be done if there is political will. All we get from any foreign secretary is ‘We are raising Jagtar’s case’ — whether they have we don’t know.”Dan Dolan, deputy executive Director of Reprieve, a UK legal rights organisation that has been campaigning for Johal’s release, said: “While this judgment is welcome as Jagtar should not be in prison a day longer, we must now watch closely to ensure this order is actually implemented and not obstructed in any way.”Chris Esdaile, senior legal adviser at REDRESS, a London NGO that pursues legal claims on behalf of survivors of torture around the world, that has also campaigned for Johal, said: “This is a welcome development, but it can’t undo the intolerable suffering caused by nine years of arbitrary detention without a fair and timely resolution. The need for accountability for the allegations of torture and the deeply flawed proceedings against Jagtar remains urgent.”
