Karnataka High Court Asks Centre If Indian Convicted In Saudi Arabia Can Avail Counsel Of His Choice Before Confirming Authority

The Karnataka High Court on Monday sought to know from the Union Government, whether a convict is permitted to avail an advocate of his choice to represent him before the confirming authority in Saudi Arabia.

A single judge bench of Justice Krishna S Dixit has asked the Union government to respond by August 8, on three queries, while hearing a petition filed by the wife of one Shailesh Kumar who has been arrested in 2020 and sentenced to suffer 15 years imprisonment on charges of blasphemy and sedition for having made objectionable posts targeting the King of Saudi Arabia and Islam, on his alleged Facebook account.

The clarification sought by the court are on the following points:

1: Whether confirmation proceedings in Riyad court permits appearance of counsel for the convict in question and if answer is in the affirmative whether the Union government would consider providing defence counsel to him.

2: The scope of confirmation proceedings under the native law of Saudi Arabia, as to whether material turning out from the investigation (by the police in Mangaluru) can be pressed into service in the confirmation proceedings.

3: Whether the Indian Embassy can request the concerned for deferment of the confirmation proceedings till after the police investigation, which is half-way through, is accomplished.

On the aspect of keeping confirmation proceedings pending till the investigation is completed, the Central Government counsel informed the Court that the authorities are taking a decision and the same will be communicated to the concerned authorities in Saudi Arabia.

To which the bench orally observed “We have limited interference in matters relating to diplomacy. These are all matters related to sovereign functions of the State, so we have limited role and scope of scrutiny. That being said, you have to show from your part you have done all that is possible.”

It added, “It is a Sovereign function so the Court should be a mute spectator- this argument will not hold. If we can strike down Constitutional amendments, we have the power to see what all you are doing reasonably in the fitness of things because it is a matter of a citizen’s life.”

The Court on going through the memo filed by the investigating officer noted “Some progress is happening in right directions although its pace is not satisfactory.”

Kavitha Shailesh in her plea has claimed that her husband was employed in Saudi Arabia. She alleged that Shailesh's Facebook account was hacked and using the same an unknown person posted objectionable content targeting the King of Saudi Arabia and Islam. She claims that she had filed a police complaint in Mangaluru. However, in the meanwhile, the Saudi authorities arrested Shailesh and imprisoned him.

On the previous hearing the court had suggested to the police to conduct a broad based investigation and not limit it to the alleged Facebook account of the detenu. It directed the police to carry out further investigation in the matter with the assistance of experts/agencies in the field of Information Technology.

Case Title: MRS KAVITHA SHAILESH And Union of India & Others

Case No: WP 22905/2021