Going to jail is the idea of a bad dream for most people, but imprisonment in another country can be an hellish experience. Like citizens of many other countries, thousands of Indians have also been lodged in jails abroad – for a few years, for a few decades. Their voices and appeal as they lack proximity to the country.
After being first elected in 2014, Prime Minister Narendra Modi wanted the situation to be dealt with by the Ministry of External Affairs. At that time, the number of Indians in jails abroad was well over 10,000. Many of the prisoners were in jail for petty reasons – like fishermen, who unknowingly entered the regional water of a neighboring nation, or the villagers inadvertently crossed an unprecedented border post, or to the passengers who accidentally overtook their visa limits.
In the last decade, the Government of India has made efforts to bring back such Indian citizens and has allowed them a new beginning. While the Ministry of External Affairs has helped secure the release of many such individuals, some difficult negotiations, while the Ministry of External Affairs has witnessed direct participation by the Prime Minister, who has so far created a synergy with global leaders in his three words.
The independence of about 10,000 Indian citizens is still safe since 2014, the Ministry of External Affairs has said. The Ministry of External Affairs said, “The latest example is the forgiveness of 500 Indian prisoners in the UAE,” saying “it reflects strong bilateral relations between India and the UAE”.
“Since 2014, since 2014, the Prime Minister has given priority to the welfare of Indian citizens abroad, which ensures the safe return of about 10,000 Indian citizens imprisoned abroad through diplomatic dialogue and high-level interventions,” the statement said.
This highlighted some prime examples, where many countries agreed to release or forgive Indian citizens due to diplomatic efforts:
- United Arab Emirates – Between 2022 and 2025, each year the UAE has forgiven hundreds of Indian prisoners, including some during the holy month of Ramadan or during the festival of Eid. In 2022, UAE released 639 Indian prisoners. In 2023, the count went beyond 700. In 2024 944, and in 2025, it has been 500 so far.
- Saudi Arabia – In 2019, during his visit to India, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman ordered the release of 850 Indian prisoners.
- Queue – In a major diplomatic victory for New Delhi, at the highest levels, after much interaction, Qatar agreed to the release of 8 Indian Navy veterans, who were facing a death penalty. Most of them were later allowed to return to India.
- Iran – In 2023 and 2024, Iran released 43 and 77 Indian citizens respectively from their jails. In 2023, 12 out of 43 were fishermen.
- Bahrain – As a gesture of friendship and mercy, the Bahrain government decided to release 250 Indians living in jail in 2019. He was freed during PM Modi’s visit to the country that year.
- Kuwat – In 2017, after several rounds of talks through diplomatic channels, the rich of Kuwait agreed to release 22 Indian citizens and reduce the sentences for 97 others.
- Sri Lanka – After regular intervention and mediation through diplomatic channels, Sri Lanka left Indian fishermen on several occasions, accidentally and inadvertently crossing their regional water. Since 2014, a total of 3,697 Indian fishermen have been released by Sri Lanka.
- Pakistan Since 2014, after repeated and tireless diplomatic efforts with Islamabad, New Delhi has managed the release of 2,639 fishermen and 71 civilian prisoners.
Emphasizing India’s “unwavering commitment” for security abroad for Indian citizens, the statement said that “a lot of these successes had become possible due to” personal coordination. PM Modi has built with global leaders. “
In the last decade, India’s global diplomatic and economic stature have increased significantly, the Ministry of External Affairs said.
