The lawyers of AgustaWestland case accused, Christian Michel, have urged the United Kingdom government to take up the issue of his release from judicial custody with the Indian government. He is currently lodged in Tihar Jail.
They would again petition the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, which had in February ruled that the detention of Mr. Michel, a British national, in Indian prison since December 2018 was arbitrary. The deadline for acting on the UN panel's opinion expired on May 27. India had rejected the panel's conclusions.
The legal team that addressed the online press conference on Thursday included Toby Cadman, François Zimeray and Aljo K. Joseph, who represents Mr. Michel in India. His sons Alaric and Alois Michel were also present. They sought a fair trial for their father and expressed concern about his well-being.
“His life is in danger, especially in the midst of the COVID pandemic raging in Indian prisons,” said a statement issued by the team.
On January 7, Mr. Michel had written a 35-page letter to the U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson, Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab and Home Secretary Priti Patel, calling on the U.K. Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, to intervene in his case.
Mr. Michel had alleged that his extradition from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to India was motivated by political reasons. His legal team has alleged that his handover to the Indian authorities was unlawful.
Mr. Zimeray said, given that the AgustaWestland accused was a European Union citizen at the time of his transfer from the UAE to India, he could raise the issue with the EU Commission.
In the light of allegations by the Punjab National Bank fraud case accused, Mehul Choksi, that he was abducted from Antigua and taken to Dominica, Mr. Joseph saw an emerging pattern.
