Mumbai: Actor Celina Jaitly, whose brother Major (retd) Vikrant Jaitly is in the custody of UAE authorities, has now requested Prime Minister Narendra Modi to intervene in the matter and secure his release.
Celina, in an interview with India Today, talked about the lack of information about his arrest. Major Vikrant, a former Indian Army Special Forces officer, has been detained in the United Arab Emirates since September 2024.
She has come to know recently that her brother had been moved to Al-Wathba Detention Centre in Abu Dhabi, the actor said. He was allegedly picked up from the Mall of the Emirates parking area by unidentified people who asked for his Emirates ID.
“A soldier of our country is in a foreign jail without prosecution. Why should we delay legal aid any further? My request to Modiji is to please bring this soldier back. He has given his entire youth to the nation. If he had done something wrong, there would have been a prosecution by now,” she said.
Indian soldiers “are not just numbers,” she said adding that the “nation must stand behind them.”
“Didi (Sister) is with you. The whole country is with you. I will move mountains to get you back,” she said in a message to her brother.
Celina has welcomed the Delhi High Court’s recent order permitting the appointment of a UAE-based legal firm to represent Major Vikrant. The Court allowed advocates in the UAE to represent the retired Army officer, bringing renewed hope to her family after months of uncertainty.
The High Court directed the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) to issue an order to a legal firm, Al Maree Partners, to represent Celina’s brother in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. The law firm is ready to handle the matter free of cost. The next date of hearing is February 10.
