A SCOT arrested while on holiday in India has been tortured under interrogation, it has been claimed.

The family of Jagtar Singh Johal say he has been electrocuted and subjected to severe physical torture since he was arrested and detained on November 4, accused of "influencing the youth through social media".

The 30-year-old, from Dumbarton, had been in India to get married when he was seized in Jalandhar, in the state of Punjab, and forced into a van by plain-clothes officers.

But now his relatives fear that the police are torturing them in a bid to extract a false confession. They have also criticised the Foreign Office

Bhai Amrik Singh, chairman of the Sikh Federation (UK), said: “The Punjab police has been given a free hand to torture Jagtar for the last 10 days without the British High Commission taking any action to protect a law-abiding British citizen who had just been married and was spending time with his newly wed wife.”

“The callous actions of the Indian authorities are sickening, but the Foreign Office and the British High Commission appear to be under pressure not to act and will be accused of looking the other way."

Mr Johal's crimes reportedly include "running a magazine" in the UK of atrocities during the 1984 Sikh Genocide and "influencing the youth through social media".

He appeared in court last Friday, where his family and lawyers said they were denied access to him. He is due to be held on remand until Friday.

The Sikh Federation (UK) has taken up the case and said that it was lobbying MPs to push Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson to take action.

Martin Docherty-Hughes, SNP MP for West Dunbartonshire, has already said he "deeply concerned" about the situation and is supporting Mr Johal's family.

Mr Singh said: “The Prime Minister and Foreign Secretary will feel our pressure in the next seven days in Parliament via hundreds of MPs who have been contacted by constituents who are unhappy with the lack of action to secure Jagtar’s immediate release and return to the UK.”

A Foreign Office spokesman said: “We are in contact with the family of a British man who has been detained in India.

"Our staff have requested consular access from the Indian authorities so we can be assured of his welfare.”

He added: “We take all allegations or concerns of torture and mistreatment very seriously and will follow up with action as appropriate. 

"When considering how to act, we will avoid any action that might put the individual in question or any other person that may be affected at risk.”