India, June 26 -- The Indian high commission in London is closely monitoring the case of Captain Ajay Pant, a merchant navy officer from Uttarakhand's Nainital who is in judicial custody in the United Kingdom after being arrested over an alleged breach of British sanctions on Russian oil shipments.

According to an official release issued on Thursday, the High Commission informed Uttarakhand chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami about the latest developments through a letter, reported news agency PTI.

The case centres on 38-year-old Captain, Ajay Pant, who was serving as the master of MV Smyrtos, a tanker that British authorities allege was part of Russia's so-called "shadow fleet" used to circumvent Western sanctions on Russian oil.

On Ju...