Indian Captain Ajay Pant Faces 10 Years in UK Jail Over Russian Oil Sanctions
· World · Indian Express, India Today, Hindustan Times
Indian merchant navy captain Ajay Pant faces up to 10 years in a British prison after being charged with violating Western sanctions on Russian oil. British commandos intercepted and seized the oil tanker Smyrtos, which he was captaining, in the English Channel on June 14. The vessel was carrying approximately 98,000 tonnes of oil after departing from the Russian port of Ust-Luga and heading toward Egypt's Port Said. Pant, a 38-year-old resident of Ramnagar in Uttarakhand's Nainital district, has denied wrongdoing and is being held in custody without bail ahead of his trial scheduled for December 15. His wife, Ritu Pant, has defended him as a scapegoat who was merely following orders as an employee of the ship's owner.
Why it matters
The case highlights the growing legal risks faced by Indian seafarers working aboard shadow-fleet vessels targeted by Western sanctions.
Read the original report — Indian Express
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