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India begins arguments in Jadhav case before International Court of Justice
The International Court of Justice (ICJ) on Monday formally commenced a public hearing on the conviction of Indian spy Kulbhushan Jadhav, with India presenting its arguments first.
Harish Salve is representing New Delhi, while English Queen's Counsel Khawar Qureshi will make submissions tomorrow from Islamabad's side. Then India will reply on Feb 20 while Islamabad will make its closing submissions on Feb 21. It is expected that the ICJ decision may be delivered by the summer of 2019. The court's decisions are final and legally binding.
Commander Jadhav was captured in Balochistan in March 2016 after allegedly entering the country via Iran, and later confessed to his association with Indian intelligence agency Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) and his involvement in espionage and fomenting terrorism in Pakistan.
Pakistani officials say that Jadhav has been linked to 1,345 deaths in acts of terrorism in Pakistan, making secret trips to the country from Iran.
He was convicted in Pakistan by a military court and sentenced to death in April 2017. The United Nations court last year ordered Pakistan not to execute him pending the outcome of the case in The Hague.
Monday's hearings played out against a backdrop of already-high tensions between Pakistan and India over last week's attack in occupied Kashmir's Pulwama district.
India today accused Pakistan of an "egregious" breach of Jadhav's rights. Salve told judges at the ICJ that Pakistan's claims of espionage and sabotage against Jadhav have "always been strong on rhetoric and blurry on facts".
As hearings opened in the Great Hall of Justice in The Hague, Salve said that Jadhav's court martial "hopelessly fails to satisfy even minimum standards of due process and ... should be declared unlawful."
He urged judges to declare Jadhav's continued custody unlawful and "considering the trauma to which he has been subjected for over three years, it would be in the interests of justice, of making human rights a reality, to direct his release".
India claims that Pakistani authorities have ignored repeated requests to grant Jadhav access to consular officials and let him choose his own lawyer for the trial. The Foreign Ministry had facilitated a Christmas meeting between Jadhav's wife and mother in 2017.
Comments (51) Closed
Let's wait and see what happens next?
Redefining moment in the history of Pakistan begins !!!
Kashmiris are with Pakistan .
India has strong arguments in favour of Jadhav's release and hopefully, the ICJ will pass judgement to release him which is binding on Pakistan.
India will win.
Let us wait for the court's verdict after the pleading from both the sides.
Waste of time and resources by both nations which could be used for poverty alleviation.
@kashmiri, keep dreaming no tax on dreaming
@Fair_Point,
Dream on
Pakistan will win this case.we have all the relevant proofs against Jadhav along with his confession.world will acknowledge the truth and India will be badly exposed
Pakistan will win inshaAllah.
@Fair_Point, case will not be decided on number of likes here. Take a chill
ICJ has no jurisdiction. More symbolic than anything else.
Election season are getting closer in India and once again the ruling Hindu government is playing with the sentiments of poor public just by showing Pakistan as an adversary.
@Fair_Point, Pakistan did not have to take this proven Spy to the ICJ we have solid evidence against him to show the world India's real face.
Hope! that jadeve would be sentenced, because he is culprit and charged by Pakistani Court. And he was found guilty of doing unlawful acts which are higly dengerous for humanity. So ICJ should to stand up with thousands of victims, that they lost their lives and their beloved ones due to jadeve. Everyone should be equal before law.
Indian spy on a fake passport issued in a Muslim name, was on a tourist visit to Pakistan. He should be honorably released.
Salve had all the valid points.
@Fair_Point, and they are? First they will need to explain how he had a fake passport with a Muslim name.... second they will need to explain how he managed to know all the details that only a spy could know....
@Fair_Point, Release of Yadhav is dreams of people like you. May be he will not be hanged but will spend his life in Pakistani jails.
@DK PAMNANI, Why? He is a terrorist serving in Indian Navy and caught in Pakistan.
Good the world will know which country sends spies and which country blows their own soldiers and blames others .
'"considering the trauma to which he has been subjected for over three years, it would be in the interests of justice, of making human rights a reality, to direct his release".
'Pakistani officials say that Jadhav has been linked to 1,345 deaths in acts of terrorism in Pakistan, making secret trips to the country from Iran.'
What about the human rights of the 1,345 innocent civilian Pakistanis he helped murder and justice for them. They are dead but Kubushan is alive.
Hussain Mubarak Patel was artested with his original passport inside Pakistan. Who is Kulbushan Yadev?
A serving navy officer caught in Baluchistan, involved in terrorist activities. He travelled to Baluchistan under a false name. What was he doing in Baluchistan, can somebody tell me.
It appears that the ICJ’s decision is binding. Will Pakistan abide if the decision goes against them?
"Pakistani officials say that Jadhav has been linked to 1,345 deaths" great if any other local robbery and chain snatching case put it on him.
Has Pakistan won a single international case/arbitration with India? On IWT? In ICC?
@Fair_Point, The case is only if he is hanged or not. He will only see freedom when he expires, naturally or otherwise.
@Fair_Point, what was the argument agony passport with fake alias ?
Only strong point that India put across was ,please try him in a civilian court with legal assistant . Reason is that you can't hang a man by convicting him behind close doors and world not even knowing under what section. Without knowing how,why he is sentenced to death can he be hanged.
The only way India will win the case if the judgement is done on technicality rather than pure justice. Given how strong India lobby is, they might win this on technicality.
We failed to submit evidences.
@indian, Jadhav is innocent Indian citizen and funds used to protect his life....
The evidence against him and his sponsors is overwhelming.
He might be spy but linking him to terrorism is grave injustice when not a single proof exist. Self confession in custody is not acceptable in any court.
@Irfan shafqat, You relay on manufactured proofs. Which will be exposed eventually
Let Kashmiris decide their future.
@Newborn, : the article says the ICJ decision is binding...
@Newborn, it has. Pak accepted the jurisdiction the day it responded to ICJ case. Plus if you need IMF support which you won't get if you disregard ICJ
@Newborn,
"ICJ has no jurisdiction. More symbolic than anything else."
Then why pakistan is fighting the case?
This so called bussiness man has two different names.His passport,according to the Indian hole minister was Hussain Mubarak Patel.Yet, in his voter ID registration his name was registered as Khulbushan Yadev.
Let us see what this court says.Though it is biased against Pakistan.
@Newborn, 'If ICJ has no Jurisdiction',then there will be no hope to appeal if IWT is scrapped by India
Why did Pakistan allowed jurisdiction of ICJ in matter of national security? Also Dalveer Bhandari is an ICJ judge from India, no chance for Pakistan
@kashmiri, only the converts
When India and Pakistan fight , only ordinary citizens lose . Nothing happens to the people responsible for this nonsense .
@kashmiri, Yes please go there then.
@Zak, They already did my friend long time back they did you just are in denial....
Is Pakistan ready to accept if ICJ rules out that Jadhav is an innocent traveler?
@Zak, India had decidede. Kashmirus have an option move across the border or live like any other Indian
Who will believe, at one point of time India and Pakistan were one country only. We were one at one point of time and today we put most of our energies to fight with each other !! Major credits must go to politicians from both the nations : ((