Pakistan High Commissioner to New Delhi Abdul Basit on Monday rejected Indian claims about Pakistan violating a bilateral pact by not allowing India the consular access to its spy Kulbhushan Jadhav who has been sentenced to death on charges of espionage and sabotage activities, Press Trust of India (PTI) reported.
Jadhav was arrested on March 3, 2016, in a counter-intelligence operation in Balochistan's Mashkel area for his involvement in espionage and sabotage activities against Pakistan.
The charges he faced included spying for India, working against Pakistan’s integrity, sponsoring terrorism in the country and attempting to destabilise the state.
Basit in an interview with the India's news agency said that as per the bilateral pact on consular access, cases pertaining to political and security issues are decided on merit, indicating that consular access cannot be taken for granted.
India so far has made 15 requests for consular access to Jadhav, the news agency reported.
"We have a bilateral agreement under which it is clearly said that in matters relating to political and security issues, those cases should be decided on merit," Basit was quoted as saying.
"So, we have so far taken a decision strictly in accordance with the law of the land and as per the bilateral agreement of 2008 [with India]. We have not breached anything," he maintained.
"We are proceeding as per our laws as well as bilateral obligation and commitment."
Pakistan's envoy further said Jadhav was caught in Balochistan, rejecting Indian claims that he was "kidnapped from Iran".
He said that the Indian spy had been visiting Pakistan regularly since 2003, and was carrying a genuine Indian passport under a fake Muslim name, Mubarak Hussain Patel.
"We must understand Commander Jadhav had been visiting Pakistan since 2003 on an original, genuine Indian passport under the fake name of Mubarak Hussain Patel. It is for you to tell us why he was travelling under a fake name with an original Indian passport," the envoy had told India Today in an interview earlier.
On whether Jadhav's family could meet him, Basit said it was "too premature" to comment on how the case is going to proceed.
