New Delhi: Commander Purnendu Tiwary (Retd), who was among the eight Indian naval veterans arrested by Qatar in an espionage case and subsequently pardoned, has been jailed again in a separate case.
While the seven others returned to India in February 2024, following the pardon, Tiwary was kept under house arrest because of ongoing investigations in different cases.
“The eighth Naval veteran has a particular case against him. It has nothing to do with the earlier case. The court there has given a ruling and has given a sentence. We’re in touch with him as well as his family and his lawyers. That is where this particular issue is,” Randhir Jaiswal, official spokesperson for the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said Friday at a regular press briefing when questioned on Tiwary’s current situation.
The veteran was originally released from prison along with the seven other former Indian Navy personnel in February 2024. All eight were pardoned by the Amir of Qatar Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani in a case of espionage.
The eight were originally awarded the death penalty, which was commuted to varying sentences in December 2023. Eventually they were all released, following the pardon. Seven of the eight veterans arrived in India on 12 February, while the eighth—Commander Tiwary, remained in Qatar.
In a statement on the social media platform X Friday, Commander Tiwary’s sister Meetu Bhargava asserted that the imprisoned naval veteran was declared innocent by the Qatar High Court on 12 March, 2026, yet he continues to “remain in prison”.
“The responsibility for finances and contractual obligations rested solely with the company owner. Yet, in a clear attempt to shift blame, CEO Khamis implicated Commander Tiwary. The Qatar High Court, in its unequivocal judgment dated 12 March 2026, rejected these allegations and declared Commander Purnendu Tiwary innocent. Despite this clear judicial finding, he continues to remain in jail,” said Bhargava in her statement.
A person familiar with the matter said that in one case against Tiwary, filed by the CEO of Dahra Global Technologies and Consultancy Services Khamis Al-Ajmi—an Omani national—was dismissed by Qatari authorities. However, in February, Tiwary along with other people associated with Dahra were convicted in a financial and commercial matter. Those convicted along with Tiwary included a Qatari national and an Omani national.
The person added, “This assertion by Ms Meetu Bhargava is factually incorrect. Mr Tiwary has been sentenced by Qatar’s Court of Cassation alongwith the Omani owner and another Qatari officer. This judgement came in February 2026. The judgement of March 12, 2026 is a separate case that was filed by the Omani owner of the company against Mr Tiwary.
“Government of India has always extended all possible help to Mr Tiwary and continues to do so. Embassy is in touch with his wife and our officers have met him in jail on several occasions. We have also taken up the case for pardon. It is again mentioned that the case in which Mr Tiwary has been sentenced is a separate case than the one in which he and others were released following GOI’s intervention.”
“Commander Tiwary has been sentenced to prison and a substantial fine has been imposed against him,” another person said, indicating that the judicial processes against the former Dahra managing director were multi-fold.
The original case against Commander Tiwary was investigated by Qatari authorities before it grew to include the espionage charges, the second person said. Eventually the seven other naval veterans were brought under the scanner for espionage as Qatari authorities investigated the actions of Dahra Global.
The eight veterans were arrested in August 2022. Legal proceedings began against them in March 2023, as reported by ThePrint. The eight faced espionage charges, while Tiwary also had other pending charges under investigation.
On 26 October 2023, all eight naval veterans were sentenced to death. Al-Ajmi, the Omani owner of Dahra Global Technologies and Consultancy Services, was also detained by the authorities, but eventually let off.
The Qatari Court of Appeals eventually commuted the death sentence of the eight veterans to life imprisonment in some cases, and long sentences for others. Eventually in February 2024, the eight were pardoned by Amir Al Thani with regards to the espionage charge alone, people familiar with the matter confirmed.
The pardon was not extended to all the pending investigations open against Commander Tiwary. However, Commander Tiwary’s health has come under question, with his sister asserting that “his condition is now critical”.
“Commander Tiwary has endured nearly four years of extreme hardship in Doha and has now been languishing in jail for almost five months. He is suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) along with other serious medical conditions. His health is deteriorating rapidly,” said Bhargava on X.
She added: “For over two years, the family waited in silence, trusting repeated assurances from MEA. That trust now stands completely shaken. It is heartbreaking—and unacceptable—that his 87-year-old mother still waits while her son remains behind.”
This is an updated version of the report
(Edited by Amrtansh Arora)
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