New Delhi, Nov 24: A Qatari court has admitted the Indian government's appeal against the death penalty handed down to eight former Indian Navy personnel in that country, according to media reports, even as there was no official word from the Ministry of External Affairs here on Friday.

The Qatari court on Thursday admitted the appeal filed by the Indian government and the next hearing is to be held soon, the reports said.

Last week, India said the appeal process against the death sentence given to the eight former Indian Navy personnel by a Qatari court is under process and it was hopeful of a positive outcome from it.

External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi had said India is engaged with the Qatari authorities on the matter and the government will continue to extend all legal and consular assistance to the Indian nationals.

The eight Indians were on October 26 given the death sentence by Qatar's Court of First Instance. India described the ruling as "deeply" shocking and vowed to explore all legal options in the case.

Days later, an appeal was filed against the death sentence.

The Indian nationals, who worked with private company Al Dahra, were arrested in August last year reportedly in an alleged case of espionage.

Neither the Qatari authorities nor New Delhi made the charges against the Indian nationals public.

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Bengaluru (PTI): A 46-year-old man allegedly killed a woman lecturer by setting fire to the car with her inside, before dying by suicide; his severed body was found by railway police the next day, police said on Tuesday.

The deceased, identified as Ramanjinappa, a resident of Doddaballapura, was a contract worker in the tahsildar’s office, they said.

Police said the man, who was married and had apparently separated from his wife, was in an illicit relationship with a woman identified as Saroja, whose charred body was found inside a gutted car in an isolated area near the Bashetty Industrial Area in Doddaballapura taluk on the outskirts of Bengaluru.

Saroja was also married and had a son, police said.

According to police, on Saturday, the man allegedly borrowed a car from an acquaintance, claiming he had a medical emergency and needed to visit a hospital.

Citing preliminary investigations, a senior police officer said the man picked up the lecturer from a bus stop in Devanahalli. The two spent a couple of hours driving around Nandi Hills and nearby areas.

Later, they reached a secluded spot in Doddaballapura, where it is suspected that an argument ensued inside the car, following which he allegedly hit her on the head with a hammer, the officer said.

He then set the car on fire, reportedly using petrol, and is believed to have died by suicide thereafter, police said.

Locals who saw the burning car alerted the police and fire department, who rushed to the spot, extinguished the fire, and found the woman’s body completely charred inside the vehicle, the officer added.

His severed body was found near railway tracks in Bidadi by the railway police on Sunday, he said.

The motive and whether the crime was premeditated or impulsive are under investigation, he said.

Saroja’s husband filed a complaint accusing Ramanjinappa of killing her, police said, adding that a detailed investigation is underway to establish the exact sequence of events.