‘Please bring Purnendu home’: 88-year-old mother of Indian Navy veteran detained in Qatar seeks answers | Exclusive

At 88 years old, Pramodini Tiwary remains desperate to see her son, Commander Purnendu Tiwary, return home from Qatar. In an exclusive interview with LiveMint, the mother expressed her anguish over watching her 67-year-old son detained for years in Doha and the repeated assurances given that his return was merely a matter of completing formalities.

On February 12, 2024, Tiwary learned that only she remained in Qatar, while her son and seven fellow Navy veterans had returned to India. She recounted how the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) had also stated that only some formalities remained before her son could be released. Her son, who suffers from multiple ailments, including Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) attributed to his prolonged solitary confinement, is now 88 years old and faces a devastating ordeal.

The family is demanding clarity on the unresolved formalities and the reasons for the prolonged delay in resolving them. Tiwary was among eight former Indian Navy personnel detained in 2022 in an espionage case that garnered significant attention in India. He was released along with seven others in February 2024, but he remained in detention.

The family has also questioned a six-year sentence imposed in a separate financial case in Qatar, which they claim found him not guilty in a subsequent court proceeding. The MEA maintains that the Indian Embassy in Qatar provides consular assistance to Tiwary and continues to communicate with his family. However, the family is frustrated by the lack of meaningful communication and the extended period of separation. The mother's plea is clear: "Please bring Purnendu home."