Bollywood actor Celina Jaitly has been pursuing the case of the detainment of her brother, Maj (Rtd) Vikrant Kumar Jaitly, in the United Arab Emirates since September last year. A few days ago, the Delhi High Court has asked the Centre if it was possible to interact with the actor’s brother to facilitate the interaction.
In the latest update from news agency ANI, the Delhi High Court on Tuesday granted time to the Centre and the Indian Embassy in Abu Dhabi to pursue through diplomatic channels and seek cooperation of the UAE authorities in the matter of detention of Major Vikrant Jaitly (retd). (Also read: Delhi HC asks Centre if it was possible to get in touch with Celina Jaitly’s brother to facilitate interaction)
Access denied to interact with Celina’s brother
The report states that the Centre’s counsel told Justice Purushaindra Kumar Kaurav that the embassy requested consular access to Vikrant Jaitly on February 13, but the UAE authorities denied it, and the next date for such a meeting was awaited.
The Centre’s lawyer sought a reasonable time of 3-4 weeks to enable the Ministry of External Affairs and the Indian Embassy to pursue the matter with the UAE authorities through diplomatic channels and seek the necessary cooperation. “The prayer seems to be reasonable. Accordingly, the hearing is deferred,” the court said.
“It is not the case of the ministry not doing anything… After 10-15 days, nothing is going to change. The ministry says grant us 3-4 weeks so that we can do something substantial,” it added.
More details on the case
For the unversed, earlier this month, the Delhi High Court directed the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) to issue an order to a legal firm, Al Maree Partners, to represent Celina Jaitly’s brother, Major (retd.) Vikrant Jaitly in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. The law firm is ready to handle the matter free of cost.
The name of the firm was suggested by the actor’s counsel, Raghav Kacker, assisted by Advocates Madhav Agrawal and Suradhish Vats. It was submitted that the legal firm is willing to represent Major (Retd.) Vikrant Jaitly is provided free of charge (pro bono). They have obtained the case details independently.
The actor’s petition claimed that her brother had been illegally abducted and detained in the UAE since September 2024. She contended that despite more than a year having passed, the Centre had failed to obtain even basic information about his welfare or legal status.
