Kulbhushan Jadhav Case: Pakistan to Provide Consular Access To Former Indian Naval Officer Tomorrow
Pakistan will provide consular access to Kulbhushan Jadhav on Monday. The consular access to Jadhav will be given in accordance with Vienna Convention on Consular relations. Meanwhile, reacting to Pakistan’s decision, Indian said that it will study the offer.
Islamabad, September 1: Pakistan on Sunday offered to provide consular access to Kulbhushan Jadhav on September 2. Kulbhushan Jadhav is a retired Indian Navy officer sentenced to death by a Pakistani military court in 2017 on the charges of "espionage and terrorism". The consular access to Jadhav will be given in accordance with Vienna Convention on Consular relations. ICJ Verdict in Kulbhushan Jadhav Case: Highlights of Judgment Delivered By International Court of Justice.
Pakistan Foreign Office Spokesperson Mohammad Faisal said. “Consular access to Kulbhushan Jadhav will be provided tomorrow, in line with Vienna Convention on Consular relations, International Court of Justice (ICJ) judgement & the laws of Pakistan.” Meanwhile, reacting to Pakistan’s decision, Indian said that it will study the offer. Kulbhushan Jadhav Case at ICJ Live Streaming: India 'Sponsoring Terrorism' in Balochistan, Says Pakistan; Watch Video.
On August 8, a day after downgrading the diplomatic ties with India, Pakistan had turned down the Narendra Modi government's request for “unimpeded consular access” to the former Indian naval officer. Earlier, the Imran Khan government had laid certain conditions for providing consular accesses to Jadhav. However, after India scrapped the special status of Jammu and Kashmir, the Jadhav’s matter was shelved under files.
In July this year, the ICJ accepted New Delhi's request for consular access to the former Indian Naval officer. The ICJ asked Pakistan to review the conviction and sentencing of Jadhav. The UN court also ruled that the death sentence awarded to Jadhav will remain suspended.
Jadhav was sentenced to death by a Pakistani military court for alleged "espionage and terrorism" in April 2017. The ICJ had in May 2017 restrained Pakistan from executing Jadhav. Notably, India has time and again maintained that Jadhav had retired from services when he was "kidnapped" by Pakistan's ISI from the frontier region of Iran -- where the ex-navy officer was setting up his own business.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 01, 2019 08:27 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).