149 Indians in Sharjah jails freed under general amnesty

Prisoners of all nationalities in jails in Sharjah who have completed three years of incarceration and who do not have any criminal case registered against them would be set free under a general amnesty.

They include 149 Indians, including Keralites, the ruler of Sharjah, Sheikh Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, said here on Tuesday.

He was delivering the acceptance speech at a special convocation ceremony of the University of Calicut convened to confer on him the degree of Doctor of Letters (DLitt). The convocation was held at Raj Bhavan.

The free prisoners would be rehabilitated in Sharjah itself and need not return to their homes, he said. Earlier during his meeting with Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, the latter requested the Sultan to set free Keralites in Sharjah jails who have completed three years and help them come back home. The Sultan reportedly told Mr. Vijayan that the released persons would be given good jobs in the UAE itself and that they would not have to return home.

(A communique said 149 Indians including Keralites would benefit from the general amnesty. These include people involved in financial irregularities and petty crimes.)

In his speech, the Sultan pointed out that the people of Sharjah and Kerala have been interacting with each other for many centuries.

“Our interactions have steadily intensified over the last six decades and the resulting mutually beneficial contribution of entrepreneurs, the professionals and tradesmen from Kerala is evident in Sharjah and Kerala,” he said.