Who is Jaswant Singh Chail, who has been jailed for trying to kill Queen Elizabeth?

Two years after he broke into Windsor Castle with a loaded crossbow to kill Britain’s Queen Elizabeth, Jaswant Singh Chail has been sentenced to nine years in jail with a further five years on extended licence. After being arrested on Christmas Day 2021 on the grounds of the royal residence, he had pleaded guilty to three charges, including treason and possession of an offensive weapon, at a hearing at London’s Old Bailey court in February this year. Sentencing judge Justice Hilliard said in the order: “The defendant harboured homicidal thoughts which he acted on before he became psychotic. His intention was not just to harm or alarm the sovereign – but to kill her.” Let’s take a look at Chail and his motives for trying to kill the British monarch then. Who is he? As per BBC, Chail hails from North Baddesley which is near Southampton. Chail previously worked for a co-operative supermarket, but was unemployed at the time of the incident.

As per Vice, Chail in his Snapchat posts said he wanted to avenge the 1919 Jallianwala Bagh massacre.

The massacre took place at Jallianwala Bagh in Amritsar during the Baisakhi festival in April 1919 when the British Indian Army under the command of Colonel Reginald Dyer opened fire at a crowd staging a pro-independence demonstration. At least 379 people were killed, according to the official record, although local residents have said in the past the toll was far higher. Britain is yet to offer a formal apology for the massacre. Former prime minister David Cameron, during his visit to India earlier, had expressed regret and termed the Jallianwala Bagh tragedy a “deeply shameful scar”. As per Daily Beast, Chail, referencing Star Wars, said: “I’m an Indian Sikh, a Sith. My name was Jaswant Singh Chail, my name is Darth Jones.” He added, “I’m sorry. I’m sorry for what I’ve done and what I will do. I will attempt to assassinate Elizabeth, queen of the royal family.” [caption id=“attachment_11754431” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Queen Elizabeth II was at Windsor Castle that day. She would usually spend Christmas at her  Sandrigham estate. AFP,[/caption] “This is revenge for those who have died in the 1919 Jallianwala Bagh massacre. It is also revenge for those who have been killed, humiliated and discriminated on because of their race,” he added. Prosecutors said Chail recorded the footage four days before his arrest and sent it to around 20 people 10 minutes before his arrest, as per BBC. What happened? Chail was arrested at the royal residence west of London on 25 December, 2021. That day, the Queen was at Windsor Castle with her eldest son and then heir Prince Charles, and his wife Camilla. The Queen, who died in September 2022 at age 96, usually spent Christmas at her Sandringham estate in Norfolk. Her Majesty was due to be joined for lunch by the then Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall, as well as the Earl and Countess of Wessex. Prosecutors said Chail scaled a wall with a rope ladder and entered the castle grounds, wearing a hood and metal mask and carrying a loaded crossbow with the safety catch off. It is understood Chail had scaled the perimeter of the grounds with a nylon rope ladder some two hours before he was detained. According to Vice, the royal protection officer who encountered Chail removed his taser and said, “Morning, can I help, mate?” To which Chail responded: “I am here to kill the Queen.” The officer then ordered Chail to his knees. Chail put down the loaded crossbow and obeyed.

Then again said: “I am here to kill the Queen.”

He was also carrying a note that read, “Please don’t remove my clothes, shoes and gloves, masks etc, don’t want [a] post-mortem, don’t want embalming, thank you and I’m sorry." According to Express UK, the prosecution claimed Chail was carrying a Supersonic X-Bow weapon that has the potential to cause “serious or fatal injuries”. [caption id=“attachment_13209442” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Jaswant Singh Chail is arrested by police in the grounds of Windsor Castle, in Windsor, England. AP[/caption] Prosecutors claimed Chail previously tried to join the British Army and the Ministry of Defense Police to get close to the royal family. Chail’s father, a software engineer, told the Daily Mail at the time of the arrest, ““Something’s gone horribly wrong with our son and we are trying to figure out what.” “We’ve not had a chance to speak to him but are trying to get him the help he needs. From our perspective, we are going through a difficult time. We are trying to resolve this issue and it’s not easy.” Commander Richard Smith of the Metropolitan Police Counterterrorism Command said “this was an extremely serious incident.” He said officers patrolling the castle grounds “showed tremendous bravery to confront a masked man who was armed with a loaded crossbow, and then detain him without anyone coming to harm.” [caption id=“attachment_13209452” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] The crossbow Jaswant Singh Chail had in his possession when arrested by police and the one he wanted to use to kill the Queen. AP[/caption] During investigations it was found that he had confided his murderous plan to AI chatbot Sarai, with whom he had exchanged 5,000 sexually charged messages in the weeks before. He believed Sarai was his girlfriend and that the two would be reunited with him killing the Queen. He had told Sarai he loved her and described himself as a “sad, pathetic, murderous Sikh Sith assassin who wants to die”. Chail has in a letter apologised to King Charles and the royal family for his actions. He has expressed his “distress and sadness” for the impact on them. His barrister, Nadia Chbat, said: “He is embarrassed and ashamed he brought such horrific and worrying times to their front door. He has expressed relief no one was actually hurt. Treason charges Earlier in February, Chail had pleaded guilty to violating the Treason Act. With this, he becomes the first person in the UK to be convicted of treason in over 40 years. In 1981, Marcus Sarjeant was charged under the act after firing blank shots at the queen as she rode on horseback in the Trooping the Color parade in London. He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to five years in prison. The last person to be convicted under the separate and more serious Treason Act of 1351 was William Joyce, a World War II Nazi propaganda broadcaster known as Lord Haw-Haw. He was hanged for high treason in 1946. With inputs from agencies