ICJ TO DELIVER JADHAV CASE VERDICT TODAY
The International Court of Justice will announce its verdict on Thursday on India’s appeal against the death sentence awarded by a Pakistani court to alleged spy Kulbhushan Jadhav. The verdict comes after India and Pakistan clashed on Monday at the ICJ over Jadhav with New Delhi invoking the court’s jurisdiction to see that the death sentence is annulled.
NEW DELHI: The International Court of Justice (ICJ) will rule on Thursday on an Indian appeal for a stay on the execution of Kulbhushan Jadhav by Pakistan, news agency PTI said quoting government sources.
The verdict is set to be announced at 3:30 pm (Indian Standard Time).
Jadhav, a former Indian Navy officer, was sentenced to death by a Pakistani military court on espionage charges.
Pakistan says Jadhav, 46, was arrested in the restive Balochistan province. In April, a military court sentenced him to death for alleged involvement in spying and subversive activities. India contended he was kidnapped from the Iranian port of Chabahar and his trial was a “farce”.
India argued during the hearing at the ICJ at The Hague on Monday that Pakistan had violated the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations by not granting consular access to Jadhav even after 16 requests were made.
Jadhav’s fate has remained uncertain as the ICJ deferred its ruling on India’s petition to stop his execution.
Pakistan said in its presentation that consular access could not be granted as Jadhav was a “terrorist” and that India had “invoked the jurisdiction of this court improperly”.
UK-based lawyer Khawar Qureshi, who appeared for Pakistan, said a 2008 bilateral agreement allows both countries to decide on consular access in matters involving “political or security” issues.
The Pakistani side suffered a setback when the ICJ turned down its request to play the purported “confessional” video of Jadhav at the hearing. A video wall was set up by the Pakistani side but the court upheld the Indian team’s objection to any playback.
PAK HAD SUFFERED A SETBACK WHEN THE ICJ TURNED DOWN ITS PLEA TO PLAY JADHAV’S ‘CONFESSIONAL’ VIDEO AT THE HEARING