Pakistan contacts India to appoint lawyer in Kulbhushan Yadhav case

ISLAMABAD: Foreign Office spokesperson Aisha Farooqui has said that Pakistan re-contacted Indian government over matter of appointing a legal representative for spy and agent of intelligence agency Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) Kulbhushan Jadhav.

During a press briefing, Aisha Farooqui said that the decision to re-contacted was taken under the light of Islamabad High Court (IHC) orders. “We are waiting for the response of Indian authorities on this matter, she added.  

On August 3, the court had instructed the government to re-contact India for the appointment of legal representative for Kulbhushan Jadhav. IHC Chief Justice Athar Minallah asked the attorney general to brief the court about the history of the case.

The top judge said that we want to make the Indian government and Kulbhushan part of the case over which, the federation assured to again approach India through diplomatic ways for the hiring of a lawyer for the spy.

Earlier, the government had moved the court stating that Kulbhushan, who was involved in numerous terrorist activities in Pakistan, had refused to file an appeal against his sentence.

On July 2, Pakistan had decided to grant third consular access to Kulbhushan Jadhav following his refusal to file a review petition against his sentence.

On July 16, 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.

Aisha Farooqui said the first consular access under the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations 1963 was earlier provided by Pakistan on the second September last year. She said the mother and wife of Commander, Jadhav were also allowed to meet him on December 25, 2017.

Jadhav 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.

He also made important revelations about RAW’s role in sponsoring state terrorism in Pakistan. Jadhav was sentenced to death by a Pakistani military court on charges of espionage and terrorism in April 2017.

However, India approached the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in May 2017 against Pakistan for denying consular access to Jadhav.

Although, the ICJ is expected to pronounce its verdict in the case involving Indian national Kulbhushan Jadhav, sentenced to death in Pakistan, on 17th July 2020.