The Ministry of External Affairs on Thursday said Pakistan has its own compulsions to lie to its people about the International Court of Justice’s verdict on the Kulbhushan Jadhav case. Pakistan has claimed victory in the Kulbhushan Jadhav case despite the International Court of Justice ruling that the country had violated the Vienna Convention in its treatment of the former Indian Navy officer, who has been sentenced to death by a Pakistani military court for espionage. The court asked Islamabad not to execute Jadhav for now.
“Frankly, it seems to me they’re reading from a different verdict,” MEA spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said. “[The] Main verdict is in 42 pages, if there is no patience to go through 42 pages, they should go through 7-pages Press Release, where every point is in India’s favour.”
The international court’s decisions were overwhelmingly in favour of India on most counts, with 15 of the 16 judges on the court concluding that Pakistan violated the Convention. The only dissenting vote came from Tassaduq Hussain Jillani, an ad-hoc Pakistani judge who was placed on the bench, since it already included an Indian judge.
Pakistan claimed that Jadhav had been spying for India’s Research and Analysis Wing when he was caught in 2016 – a claim that India denies. India, which rarely approaches international forums for justice, had urged the International Court of Justice to review Pakistan’s treatment of Jadhav, saying it was illegal. India maintains that Jadhav was working on his private business in Iran when he was kidnapped by Pakistan.
In its judgement, the court first decided that it had clear jurisdiction in the matter, despite Pakistan’s objections. It also found that the treatment of Jadhav was in contravention of the Vienna Convention, which both countries are party to. Since this treatment breached international law, the court said Pakistan would now have to review and reconsider the case. It added that Pakistan must not execute Jadhav before that, calling it an “indispensable condition” for the review and reconsideration of the case.
We hope this time Hafiz Saeed will be brought to justice: MEA
MEA spokesperson Raveesh Kumar on Thursday said India hoped that Jamaat-ud-Dawa chief Hafiz Saeed will be tried and sentenced for terrorist activities. Saeed was arrested on Wednesday by Pakistan’s Counter Terrorism Department in Punjab province, and sent to judicial remand for seven days.
“It has been happening for a long time – arrest-release, arrest-release,” said Kumar. “After every major terror incident he perpetrates in India, he has been arrested & then released on some grounds or other. This drama, to my count, has happened over 8 times since 2001.”
Kumar said only time will tell if this time, it is more than a cosmetic step. “We hope that this time Hafiz Saeed will be brought to justice,” he added.
The JuD chief was moved to Lahore’s high-security Kot Lakhpat jail, where former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif is also lodged, on Wednesday. Saeed’s arrest came ahead of Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan’s visit to the United States. Later on Wednesday, United States President Donald Trump praised the arrest, saying that “great pressure” was exerted over Pakistan to find the mastermind of the 2008 Mumbai terror attack.
Pakistan’s Counter-Terrorism Department, on July 3, had registered 23 cases against Saeed and 12 accomplices for using five trusts to “funnel funds to terror suspects”. The JuD is believed to be a front for the terrorist group Lashkar-e-Taiba. In March, Islamabad had added Saeed’s Jamaat-ud-Dawa and Falah-e-Insaniyat Foundation to its list of proscribed organisations.
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