Political Prisoners

Douglas McAllister Excerpts

Wednesday 18th June 2025 Westminster Hall

[Douglas McAllister (West Dunbartonshire) (Lab)]

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Mr Western. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Cities of London and Westminster (Rachel Blake) and congratulate and commend her on all she is doing to help secure the release of Jimmy Lai, and her tireless work to keep his case high on the political agenda of this House, the media and the public.

Today’s debate references other political prisoners. I would like to highlight the current ongoing arbitrary detention of my West Dunbartonshire constituent, Jagtar Singh Johal. Jagtar is a British national, who has been arbitrarily detained in India since 2017 on political charges carrying the death penalty, based on a confession extracted under torture. On 4 March 2025, Jagtar was acquitted of all charges in a case at the district and sessions court in Moga, Punjab, after the court rejected the allegations against him made by Indian authorities. Prosecutors had seven years to present credible evidence against Jagtar and failed to do so.

However, Jagtar has not been released because he is facing eight other cases, which are essentially duplicates—all are based on the same so-called “confession”: his name signed on a blank piece of paper after police tortured him with electricity and brought petrol into his cell and threatened to burn him alive. For Jagtar to remain imprisoned after his acquittal while standing trial in other cases based on the same facts, torture confession and inadmissible and unreliable witness evidence, would be a mockery of justice. Under the double jeopardy principle, which protects people from being put on trial twice for the same crime—and is enshrined in both international law and India’s constitution—the remaining cases against him should be dropped.

Following his acquittal, Jagtar’s conditions in prison have deteriorated significantly, and he has been placed in a solitary cell. Speaking to the all-party parliamentary group on arbitrary detention and hostage affairs on 2 April 2025, Jagtar’s brother Gurpreet said:

“Jagtar’s conditions in prison have deteriorated. He’s had his basic privileges taken away, and he’s isolated in a cell on his own, not allowed to speak to other prisoners…As a result, he’s feeling mentally tortured.”

His family report that those more stringent conditions continue to date, and are affecting Jagtar mentally. As a result, Jagtar’s family are becoming increasingly concerned for his wellbeing.

The UN working group on arbitrary detention found in May 2022 that, under international law, Jagtar’s detention is arbitrary and lacks any legal basis, and that his fair trial rights had been gravely violated. It determined that Jagtar’s detention was based on discriminatory grounds owing to his Sikh faith and status as a human rights defender, and that he was subject to torture. The UN called for Jagtar to be immediately released.

The UK Government must act now to secure Jagtar’s release. This moment in time is a unique opportunity to secure a resolution with Indian authorities and bring this young British man back to his family in Dumbarton in my home of West Dunbartonshire. Without decisive diplomatic action, he faces being imprisoned for decades while the remaining trials drag on despite the complete lack of credible evidence against him.

I joined the APPG on arbitrary detention and hostage affairs because of my constituent’s detention, and it was there that I learned about Jimmy Lai and the other UK citizens unlawfully detained across the world as political prisoners. I implore my Government to redouble their efforts in securing the release of Jimmy, Jagtar, Ryan and all our unlawfully detained constituents.

[Several hon. Members rose—]