Following the directives of International Court of Justice (ICJ), Pakistan has decided to grant consular access to Kulbhushan Jadhav on Friday.
In his weekly presser, Foreign Office Spokesperson Mohammad Faisal said Pakistan will grant consular access to the India spy and has been waiting for India’s reply. The FO spokesperson further said that India is yet to reply on the matter.
Meanwhile, India’s Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Raveesh Kumar has said that India has received a proposal from Pakistan. “We will maintain communication with Pakistan through diplomatic channels,” Kumar said in his press conference.
Jadhav was arrested on March 3, 2016 from Balochistan on allegations of espionage and terrorism. In 2017, the spy was sentenced to death in 2017. The same year the Jadhav filed a mercy petition against the death penalty. Following the plea, on India’s appeal, the ICJ ordered a stay in Jadhav’s execution.
This year in July, the ICJ rejected India’s appeal to annul the military court decision convicting Jadhav. The court also restricted Pakistan from executing the sentence and ordered Jadhav’s return to India.
The ICJ had also directed Pakistan to inform Jadhav of his rights under Article 36 and grant India consular access. The court had also ruled that Pakistan should review the case while considering its laws.
