The Delhi High Court has directed the Ministry of External Affairs of the Government of India to take action in the case of retired Indian Army Major Vikrant Kumar Jaitly, brother of Indian film actress and former Miss India Celina Jaitly. Major Vikrant Jaitly has been in custody in the United Arab Emirates for the past 14 months. He is facing a case related to “national security” there, the full details of which have not yet been officially shared.
Major Vikrant Kumar Jaitly was part of the Indian Army’s Special Forces. After retiring from the army, he has been living in the United Arab Emirates since 2016, where he and his wife Charul Chaturvedi Jaitly, run a company in the name MATITI Group.The website of the company reveals that it engages in a variety of business activities, including providing consultation and risk management services.
Hindi film actress Celina Jaitly has filed a petition in the Delhi High Court, stating that her brother, Major Vikrant, was kidnapped and illegally detained in the United Arab Emirates in September 2024. He has been unresponsive since then. Her brother needs legal and medical assistance, and the family wants to remain in contact with him. Celina says that despite repeated requests, the government is not taking any concrete action in this regard.
Advocates Raghav Kakkar, Ribhav Pandey, and Madhav Agarwal appeared on behalf of Celina Jaitley in the High Court on Monday. The actress was also present during the hearing proceedings.
Advocate Nidhi Raman , representing the Government, informed the High Court that Vikrant had been arrested in connection with “a case” and said that the Ministry of External Affairs is in touch with his wife.
She stated that not much information is known about the case in UAE. Nidhi Raman also argued that Vikrant had been granted diplomatic access in the United Arab Emirates.
A bench headed by Justice Sachin Datta of the Delhi High Court was hearing Celina Jaitly’s petition. The petition sought legal aid for her brother, real-time and direct communication between them, and regular consular access to monitor his well-being.
In her petition to the court, Celina Jaitly stated that despite her brother’s detention for over a year, the central government has not provided her with basic information about his legal status or well-being. She further claimed in the petition that there have been no phone calls or verifiable communications between them.
After hearing arguments in the case, the Delhi High Court issued a notice directing the Ministry of External Affairs to establish communication between Celina and her brother Vikrant and also directed the Ministry of External Affairs to appoint a nodal officer for the matter.
The court order stated that the government should take steps to provide effective legal representation regarding Vikrant Jaitly’s arrest and detention, and to try to establish contact between the petitioner and her brother. The government has been directed to appoint a nodal officer in this case. Giving 4 weeks time to the government to take action in this regard, the court has fixed 4th December for the next hearing.
