India to evaluate Pakistan's proposal of consular access to Kulbhushan Jadhav
New Delhi, Aug 1 (IBNS): The Ministry of External Affairs on Thursday said India will evaluate Pakistan's proposal of allowing consular access to Kulbhushan Jadhav, who is in the prison of the neighbouring country on charges of terrorism and spying.
"We have received a proposal from Pakistan. At this point of time, we are evaluating the proposal in the light of the judgement of the International Court of Justice. We will maintain communication with Pakistan in this matter through diplomatic channels so I don't think this is the appropriate forum for me to get into the modalities which have been discussed between India and Pakistan," Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said.
"We will give the reply after reviewing the proposal," Kumar added.
In a judgement favouring India on July 17, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) said Jadhav’s death sentence should remain suspended until Pakistan effectively reviews and reconsiders the conviction/sentence in light of Pakistan’s breach of Art 36(1) i.e. denial of consular access and notification.
The verdict was read out in a public sitting of the United Nations court in The Hague.
A Pakistani military court in April 2017 sentenced Jadhav to death on charges of espionage and terrorism.
Even as Jadhav, 48, was sentenced to death by a Pakistani military court in April 2017, following the Indian government's move to the international court, the 10-member bench of the ICJ on May 18, 2017 had given a stay order and 'restrained' Pakistan from executing Jadhav till adjudication of the case.
(embed in the middle)Weekly Media Briefing by Official Spokesperson (August 01, 2019) https://t.co/PPMXGkW5cl
— Raveesh Kumar (@MEAIndia) August 1, 2019
In its written pleadings, India had accused Pakistan of violating the Vienna Convention by not giving consular access to Jadhav arguing that the convention did not say that such access would not be available to an individual arrested on espionage charges.
India had said the so called trial of Jadhav by a military court in Pakistan was "farcical".
Later in December, 2017, Jadhav was allowed to meet his wife and mother but the MEA in Delhi had said it appeared Jadhav was “under considerable stress” and “speaking in an atmosphere of coercion”.
“The manner in which the meeting was conducted and its aftermath was clearly an attempt to bolster a false and unsubstantiated narrative of Jadhav’s alleged activities,” the ministry had said in a statement.
“The Pakistani side conducted the meeting in a manner that violated the letter and spirit of our understandings," it had said.
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