Cong questions govt move to take Jadhav case to ICJ

THE CONGRESS on Wednesday raised questions on the government’s decision to take the Kulbhushan Jadhav issue to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) at The Hague, asking whether the government has given Pakistan an “opportunity” to internationalise the issue.

The party pointed out India has always maintained that issues with Pakistan will be resolved bilaterally.

A day after the ICJ wrote to the Pakistan government to put on hold the execution of Jadhav, a retired Indian Navy officer convicted of espionage charges by a Pakistan military court, the Congress asked whether the NDA government has “thought through all the ramifications” of its move.

“Have we given Pakistan an opportunity to internationalise the issue. We never tried any international platform for resolving issues in the past because possibilities of others interfering also increases (in such instances). So whether we have helped Pakistan on this? Only time will tell... Has India been exposed to any kind of risk?... India has to be careful,” said Congress spokesperson Ajoy Kumar, adding that his party wants the government to take all the steps to bring back Jadhav.

Kumar said that the government was only interested in “managing new cycles” which is detrimental to India’s security. “Has the government thought through all the ramifications of this? We will be happy if there is a positive outcome without any ramifications,” he added.