File photo of former Indian naval officer Kulbhushan Jadhav. (Photo: PTI)
New Delhi: The International Court of Justice on Wednesday announced that public hearing on Kulbhushan Jadhav case will be held on May 15, 2017.
Kulbhushan Jadhav, a retired navy officer, was handed down a death penalty by a Pakistani military court for “spying” and “subversive activities”. Denouncing all such allegeations, Indian government has maintained that Jadhav is a retired navy officer and was picked up from Iran.
He was accused by Pakistan of being a “R&AW (Research and Analysis Wing) agent” and planning “subversive activities” in the country.
India had approached the ICJ against the death sentence and accused Pakistan of “egregious” violations of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations. It asserted that Jadhav was kidnapped from Iran where he was involved in business activities after retiring from the Indian Navy. However, Pakistan claimed to have arrested him from Balochistan on March 3, 2016.
Yateesh Begoore, a lawyer specializing in public international law who lives in New York, told News18 that once the provisional measures are issued by the ICJ, whether Pakistan is willing to violate an order of ICJ, and risk being an international pariah, is a political decision which will be made in Islamabad.
External Affairs Minister Swaraj had on Wednesday informed that senior advocate Harish Salve will represent India before the ICJ in the Jadhav case.
ICJ President Ronny Abraham has reportedly written a letter to Pakistan government, asking it to act in such a way which would enable the implementation of any order the ICJ may issue in the case.
Jadhav, 46, was given death sentence in April by the Field General Court Martial in Pakistan, evoking a sharp reaction in India which warned Pakistan of consequences and damage to bilateral ties if the “pre-meditated murder” was carried out.