Current Affairs Trial of Czech entomologists gets underway in India
The trial of two Czech entomologists – detained near Darjeeling, India in June for the alleged smuggling of rare insects – has gotten underway in India. 51-year-old Petr Švácha, a respected scientist both at home and internationally, and his colleague Emil Kučera, 52, spent a month in prison and now a month released on bail before their case reached trial. Both have denied any wrong-doing, including recent reports they had admitted to the charges of smuggling – which carry sentences between two to seven years in prison. Recent reports revealed both men had signed some 20 blank documents by officials when first taken into custody, which were later allegedly “doctored” to appear as confessions. On Monday Jan Velinger spoke to the Czech Ambassador to New Dehli, Hynek Kmoníček, asking him about the potential impact of those papers.
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