Staff Reporter
Islamabad
Foreign Office spokesperson Aisha Farooqui on Thursday has said that Pakistan has recontacted the Indian government over the matter of appointing legal representation for spy Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) spy Kulbhushan Jadhav.
During the new briefing, the spokesperson said that the move came under the light of Islamabad High Court (IHC) directives. We are waiting for the response of Indian authorities on this matter, she told.
Earlier, IHC had directed the government to recontact India for appointment of legal representative for Kulbhushan Jadhav. IHC Chief Justice Athar Minallah asked the attorney general to brief the court about history of the case.
The CJ said that we want to make Indian government and Kulbhushan part of the case over which, the federation assured to again approach the neighboring country through foreign office for hiring of lawyer for the spy.
Earlier on July 22, 2020, the government had moved the court stating that Kulbhushan, who was involved in several terrorist activities in Pakistan, had refused to file plea against his sentence. The agent cannot appoint lawyer in Pakistan without assistance from India, it read.
On July 2, 2020, Pakistan had decided to grant third consular access to Kulbhushan Jadhav following his refusal to file review petition against his sentence. On July 16, 2020, Indian Charge d’affaires reached the Foreign Office as New Delhi accepted Pakistan’s offer to give second consular access to Jadhav. The place where the agent was kept had been declared as sub-jail.
Foreign Office spokesperson Aisha Farooqui said first consular access under the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations 1963 was earlier provided by Pakistan on second September last year. She said the mother and wife of commander Jadhav were also allowed to meet him on December 25, 2017. Aisha Farooqui said two consular officers of the Indian High Commission in
Islamabad were provided unimpeded and uninterrupted consular access to Commander Jadhav.
ICJ rejects Indian plea for Jadhav’s release On July 17, 2019, the ICJ had rejected remedies sought by India, including annulment of military court decision convicting Kulbhushan Jadhav, his release and safe passage to India.
Announcing the verdict Judge Abdulqavi Ahmed Yousaf told Pakistan to review the death sentence for an alleged Indian spy, saying Islamabad violated his rights to consular visits.
The court, in its verdict, rejected a number of Indian demands including annulment of military court decision convicting Jadhav, his release and safe passage to India.
The ICJ found that Pakistan deprived India of the right to communicate with and have access to Kulbhushan Jadhav, to visit him in detention and to arrange for his legal representation, and thereby breached obligations incumbent upon it under Vienna Convention on Consular Relation.
The tribunal in The Hague ordered an “effective review and reconsideration of the conviction and sentence of Kulbhushan Sudhir Jadhav”. The judge remarked that Pakistan and India are signatories of the Vienna Convention.
