Freedom in sight for 'death row' Indians

A group of Indian men who were imprisoned following the death of a Pakistani national have been sentenced to six months imprisonment on charges of bootlegging.

However, because the 17 men - all from the north Indian state of Punjab - have already spent three years in prison, they could be considered for immediate release.

The Sharjah Appeals Court yesterday delivered the sentence accusing the men of consuming liquor.

The men were arrested in 2009 following the murder of a Misri Khan and in what appears to a fight over bootlegging.

The earlier death sentence was commuted in September after Dubai based businessmen and the owner of Grand Hotel in Ghusais contributed about  Dh3million to the family of the deceased.

Although the criminal case has been put to rest, a civil suit has been filed against the men by one of the injured Pakistani man.

“We are trying to remove the travel ban that is imposed on them. Only then can they be released and continue to stay in the country, to attend the civil case,” said Bindu Chettur, Defence Lawyer, Mohammad Salman Advocates & Legal Consultants, and who is representing the Indian men.
 

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