Pakistan to give Kulbhushan Jadhav consular access

A man holds a placard depicting Jadhav in a Mumbai neighbourhood. Pic/AFP

Islamabad: Indian national Kulbhushan Jadhav, who is on death row in Pakistan, will be granted consular access on Friday, Foreign Office spokesman said here on Thursday, two weeks after the world court ordered Islamabad to allow Indian officials to meet him. Jadhav, 49, a retired Indian Navy officer, was sentenced to death by a Pakistani military court on charges of "espionage and terrorism" in April 2017 following which India had moved the International Court of Justice (ICJ), seeking a stay on his death sentence and further remedies.

"We have offered the Indian High Commission to avail consular access on this Friday. The reply from the Indian side is awaited," Foreign Office spokesman Mohammad Faisal said at the weekly media briefing. The move comes two weeks after the ICJ ordered Pakistan on July 17 to undertake an "effective review and reconsideration" of the conviction and sentence of Jadhav and also to grant consular access to India without further delay.

In its 42-page ruling, the ICJ ruled that Pakistan had "breached" the Vienna Convention on diplomatic relations, which gives countries the right to consular access when their nationals are arrested abroad. In New Delhi, External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said India was examining Pakistan's proposal in the light of the judgement of the ICJ relating to Jadhav's case.

"We have received a proposal from Pakistan. We are at this point of time 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," he said. Pakistan claims that its security forces arrested Jadhav from restive Balochistan province on March 3, 2016 after he reportedly entered from Iran. However, India maintains that Jadhav was kidnapped from Iran where he had business interests after retiring from the Navy.

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