Retd major in ‘hot soup’—secrecy around Celina Jaitly’s brother spotlights UAE’s ‘blackbox detentions’

Retired Indian Army Major Vikrant Jaitly was picked up from a Dubai mall last year. Charges against him haven’t been made public & UAE authorities remain tight-lipped.

Celina Jaitly has been speaking about her brother's detention and has also moved Delhi HC seeking government intervention. | @CelinaJaitly

New Delhi: On the evening of 6 September 2024, former Indian Army Major Vikrant Jaitly and his wife Charul were walking towards their car in the busy basement parking of Dubai’s Mall of the Emirates, shopping bags in hand. Two men, dressed in black, their faces covered, approached them. They asked Charul to step aside, took hold of Jaitly and led him to a waiting black SUV. The vehicle drove off, and that was the last time he was seen in public. 

Since then, Jaitly’s case has remained largely opaque—typical of the ‘black box’ detentions that occur in the UAE, where individuals are taken into custody without public explanation. 

His sister, actor Celina Jaitly, has spoken publicly about his detention under unexplained circumstances and has been pleading for government intervention. Celina, the retired officer’s only surviving blood relative, has also moved the Delhi High Court seeking information on his well-being, legal representation, and diplomatic action.

Charges against Vikrant (43) haven’t been officially made public, and the UAE authorities have been tight-lipped. Among Indian agency officials, only a handful in the top brass may be aware of the exact nature of the crime he is suspected of having committed. What is known about the case though, is that Vikrant is currently held in Al Wathbah Prison in Abu Dhabi. 

Sources aware of the matter describe his situation as “hot soup”.

“It is all suggestive that he is caught up in a sensitive national-security matter,” a source said, adding that it is expected that the UAE would be allowed to complete its investigation without external interference. 

Another source explained, “These kinds of arrests indicate part of a broader pattern when it comes to individuals being investigated for national security issues.”

Sources privy to the matter have also hinted that the UAE isn’t actively engaging with the Indian authorities on the matter at this point of time, considering their intelligence has enough evidence and are in the midst of the probe. 

According to the sources, such secrecy is typical when a case involves national security. This level of secrecy is not unusual in that part of the world though. A similar approach was seen when eight former Indian Navy personnel were tried in Qatar for allegedly spying on the oil-rich kingdom’s secretive programme to obtain Italian-made, high-tech submarines. Their details emerged only once formal legal proceedings began.

ThePrint has written to the Indian embassy in the UAE, the UAE embassy in India as well Britain’s Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office seeking information about the Vikrant Jaitly case. The report will be updated if and when they respond.

A sister’s pleas

The last time Celina spoke to her brother was on Rakhi last year, which was on 19 August. Charul informed her about Vikrant’s detention only on 28 September, three weeks after he was picked up.

What followed, Celina states, are vague replies from Indian authorities after her brother finally got consular access. The Delhi High Court has now directed the government to file a status report on the matter. 

Raghav Kacker, Celina’s counsel in India, said, “Justice Sachin Datta (of the Delhi High Court) has given us a great order, and on the back of it we are confident that the governments can coordinate with each other, and ensure the release of our soldier. As my law firms are present in both jurisdictions, I am personally aware of the growing ties between India and the UAE, which shall only be strengthened by this diplomatic step.” 

Retired army officer Vikrant Jaitly’s house at Military Headquarters of War in MP. | By special arrangement

Asked about the case at a press briefing on 7 November, Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said, “Our embassy is seized of the matter. We have been making consular visits to him, and we have done so on four occasions. We are also in close touch with his family, including his wife. As is natural, whenever there’s an Indian national who needs support, we are offering all possible assistance.”

Celina Jaitly, who is in the midst of her divorce-domestic violence battle, told ThePrint, “I have lost everything in the process of finding my brother… Now, I can only rely on our government to help this former para SF (Special Forces) 4th Generation soldier who dedicated his entire youth to the service of our nation.”

Vikrant and Charul Jaitly, a former Mrs UAE, are the co-founders of Matiti Group, which works in “services ranging from Consulting, Strategy Execution, Human Capital Development, ICT Solutions & Business Intelligence”.

According to Celina’s petition, Vikrant moved to the UAE in 2016, the same year Matiti was founded. It says that Charul later “disengaged” from the business, and is currently in India.

The petition further states that the last conversation between Celina and Charul happened in July 2025 “during which she (Charul) advised the petitioner (Celina) to refrain from any further involvement and indicated her own intention to maintain minimal engagement in the matter”.

“She (Charul) has remained incommunicado ever since,” says the petition.

UAE cyber sweep 

Vikrant Jaitly is not the only Indian expat with a background of an elite military unit who is currently under detention in the UAE. Several other expats, including veterans with a background in military intelligence, cyber security and cyber intelligence have also been pushed into detention. 

British-born cyber intelligence expert Andrew Grunstein, who works in “delivering Signals Intelligence and Cyber Intelligence solutions to Government and Military clients in challenging environments”, is also reportedly in UAE custody since January this year. 

The spate of detentions—including of some young IT professionals as well as Open-Source Intelligence (OSINT) experts from other countries—started roughly in late 2023. The affected are mostly those working in the Security Operations Center (SOC) of firms dealing with cyber offences. 

Sources in the know of the matter said that former Indian Army officer Lt Col Bryan Miranda is also under detention. In his Linkedin profile, Miranda describes himself as a cyber intelligence expert and with expertise in cybersecurity, cyber forensics, “cyber threat hunting, information warfare” and other related fields.   

Miranda has co-founded multiple companies—including Digital Insights, Phronesis Corporate Intelligence Services, Plus971—all working in the cybersecurity field. Public records suggest that Phronesis and Plus971 are non-operational now. Some individuals, including at least three IT professionals associated Miranda and his Plus971, are also in detention in the UAE.

“It is suspected that Miranda and Jaitly were working together,” a source said. A 2020 LinkedIn post by Charul in 2020 tags both Vikrant and Miranda.

According to sources aware of the matter, Vikrant too worked in cybersecurity and intelligence, and had been actively involved in the Emirati market for cyber intelligence, and regularly collaborated with others from this sector.

“Miranda may have been the link for Jaitly in the case,” another source in the know of the matter said.

(Edited by Ajeet Tiwari)