February 2021

Dear Constituent,

Thank you for contacting me about the case of Jagtar Singh Johal and for expressing your thoughts and concerns.

I would like to assure you that Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) staff have been working hard to provide assistance to Mr Johal and his family, and that representations are regularly made on behalf of Mr Johal to the Government of India. 

I have been told that the Foreign Secretary raised Mr Johal's case with the Indian Minister of External Affairs, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, on 15 December 2020. Moreover, Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, Minister of State for South Asia and the Commonwealth, has been very active on this issue, last raising Mr Johal's case with the Indian High Commissioner on 28 January 2021, and with the Indian Foreign Secretary, Harsh Vardhan Shringla, on 3 November 2020. Lord Ahmad has also met with Mr Johal's family on a number of occasions, most recently on 27 January 2021.

Mr Johal's welfare is a priority for the UK Foreign Office, as is ensuring his ongoing access to his legal representatives. I am also assured that the UK's consular staff are continuing to visit Mr Johal regularly.

I appreciate that this is a desperately difficult and distressing time for Mr Johal, his family and many in the Sikh community and I will continue to follow this case closely and raise your concerns with my ministerial colleagues whenever appropriate. 

Thank you again for taking the time to contact me. 

With best wishes.

Kind regards,

Jonathan Lord MP

Member of Parliament for Woking