India seeks access to 17 sentenced to death

Dubai, Mar 30: The Indian Consulate in Dubai has sought consular access to 17 Indians, who have been awarded death sentence by Sharjah's Shariah court for killing a Pakistani man.

"The Consulate is seeking more details, including a copy of the judgement on the 17 Indians reportedly sentenced to death," Khaleej Times reported.

Reacting to the verdict, Minister of Indian Overseas Affairs Vayalar Ravi said, "We have already asked the Indian Consulate for a report and they have been asked to move fast for helping those people to appeal."

Seventeen Indian nationals have been sentenced to death for killing a Pakistani man over an illegal alcohol business dispute in Sharjah in Jan 2009.

Three other Pakistani nationals were injured in the attack, but they survived. This is the highest number of death sentences handed down at one time in the UAE.

OneIndia News