IHC forms larger bench to hear Indian spy case on Sept 3

ISLAMABAD: Islamabad High Court (IHC) will hear a case related to granting counselor access to Indian spy Kulbhushan Jadhav on 3rd September.

In this regard, the IHC has formed a larger bench including IHC Chief Justice Athar Minallah, Justice Amir Farooq, and Justice Mian Gull Hassan Aurangzeb who will hear a case related to granting counselor access to an agent of intelligence agency Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) Kulbhushan Jadhav. 

Earlier, Foreign Office had recontacted Indian government over matter of appointing a lawyer for Kulbhushan Jadhav, stating that the move came following directives of IHC.

Last month on 22nd July, the federal government filed a petition in the high court seeking appointment of a lawyer for Jadhav that stated that Kulbhushan has refused to file a plea against his sentence.

Read more: Govt moves IHC to appoint lawyer for Indian spy Jadhav

According to the petition, the agent cannot appoint a lawyer in Pakistan without assistance from India. India is also reluctant to avail of the facility under the ordinance. “Therefore, in the national interest, the court should appoint a legal representative on behalf of Kulbhushan,” it stated.

The court should order so that Pakistan’s responsibility is fulfilled as per the decision of the International Court of Justice, the petition further stated.

Pakistan decided to grant third consular access to Indian spy Kulbhushan Jadhav in July 2020.  He was arrested in 2016 for spying inside Balochistan during a counterintelligence raid, conducted by security forces.  He later confessed his involvement in terrorist activities inside Pakistan that resulted in the loss of many precious human lives.