Hitchin's Siri Guru Singh Sabha Gurdwara has added its influential voice in support of a Sikh man who has spent more than 1,000 days in custody for terror crimes he says he did not commit.

Well-respected elders from the Sikh temple from Hitchin's Wilbury Way insist Jagtar Singh Johal – known as Jaggi – is completely innocent of all charges and have called on the Indian government to release the British-born Sikh.

The group, which operates to support, enhance and promote the welfare of the local Hitchin and North Hertfordshire community spoke to Hitchin Nub News to back Jaggi.

Centred on the teachings of the Sikh religion, the Hitchin charity provides both faith and non-faith based services to over 700 beneficiaries, enhancing social interaction and cultural diversity capabilities within the community.

"The Hitchin Gurdwara committee recognise the worldwide support for the 'Free Jaggi Now' campaign," they said in a statement on Saturday morning, adding: "We advocate the push for Jaggi to receive fair process and adequate support from the UK consulate. We hope to hear of progress on his case as soon as possible.'

Jaggi's story began in 2017 when he travelled to India to get married.

Weeks after his wedding he was grabbed off a busy shopping street by plain clothed men, had a bag put over his head and was bundled into a van.

Many in the Sikh community allege Jaggi was taken due to his work documenting crimes against the Sikh community – but the Indian state insist he funded a Sikh separatist group, a claim he vehemently denies.

He has subsequently been implicated in terrorism against the Indian state, again, a claim he rejects, pointing to the fact he was not in India at the time of any of the terror incidents linked to him.

When he was finally allowed to speak to the UK Consulate in India, more than 10 days after he was first detained, he alleged he was tortured by police.

He also says his court hearings have been endlessly delayed, preventing opportunity for his defence team to prove his innocence, while admitting he has been disappointed with the British government, who, he says, have done little to help him while he is stuck in limbo – prompting many in the Sikh community across the world to give their support to Jaggi in a bid to free him, including Hitchin Gurdwara committee.

With Sikh's making up only two per cent of the India population, many from the community feel that Jaggi has been targeted due to his work as a writer compiling information on the atrocities committed against Sikh's in 1984.