LONDON: Relatives and advocates for a British Sikh blogger detained by India for almost nine years said on Friday he has been granted bail and should be released within days.

Jagtar Singh Johal, from Dumbarton in west Scotland, was detained in November 2017 while in India for his wedding over an alleged plot to kill right-wing Hindu leaders.

His brother, Gurpreet Singh Johal, said in a video posted on X that “in the coming days Jagtar will be released on bail”, calling this “really, really good news”.

“Now, all I can think about is Jagtar walking out of prison. We have waited so long and fought so hard for this moment,” he added in a statement released by Reprieve, a British charity that has campaigned for Johal’s release.

Johal’s MP, Douglas McAllister, welcomed the “amazing news” in a post on social media, saying his constituent was being held in “arbitrary detention”.

Published in Dawn, September 19th, 2026