As Per Media Reports “Kulbhushan Jadhav’s case in ICJ today: How, what and why of the India-Pakistan tussle” link http://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/kulbhushan-jadhav-s-case-in-icj-today-how-what-and-why-of-the-latest-india-pak-flashpoint/story-0eKAIegrH9uT8IBaldjRnL.html
The International Court of Justice will take up New Delhi’s appeal against the death sentence given to ex-navy officer Kulbhushan Jadhav by a Pakistani military court for alleged spying.
The International Court of Justice (ICJ) will set out on Monday the modalities to hear India’s challenge to a Pakistan military court’s decision to hang a former Indian naval officer on charges of spying.
It will be after 18 years that an India-Pakistan dispute will play out in the world court. India has stayed away from the ICJ and it is only the second time after 1971 that New Delhi has sought the intervention of the judicial arm of the United Nations against Pakistan.
What to expect on Monday
The Netherlands-based ICJ will likely take up Jadhav’s case at around 1pm India time in the Great Hall of Justice housed in the Peace Palace in the city of The Hague.
Both sides will get 90 minutes each to make their arguments, with India getting the first say.
The court is expected to take some provisional steps till the case is finally decided.
The 15-judge ICJ is not in session. Court president judge Ronny Abraham of France is expected to meet the agents or legal representatives of the two countries and decide on the procedural issues such as the time-frame of the case. Senior lawyer Harish Salve is representing India.
India says Jadhav, a former naval officer, is innocent. He was kidnapped and framed by Pakistan in total disregard of international laws.
The 46-year-old is a spy involved in terrorism and deserves capital punishment, says Pakistan.
The imminent danger to the life of Jadhav, who was given the death sentence by a Pakistani military court on April 10, is India’s reason for moving the ICJ.
India says Pakistan precipitated the situation by ignoring 16 requests for consular access to Jadhav. His trial in the military court was a sham and didn’t follow international norms even though Jadhav is a foreign national.
India accused Pakistan of “egregious violations” of New Delhi’s rights under the Vienna convention on consular relations (VCCR) when it sought ICJ’s intervention on May 8.
The convention allows diplomatic representatives to visit their nationals held prisoner by the host country. India also argued that Pakistan had ignored a bilateral treaty on consular access. India has sought annulment of the death sentence. For the duration of the trial, it wants Pakistan to ensure that Jadhav is not executed.
Why India is cagey about ICJ
There is a reason why India hasn’t moved the ICJ in all these years. In September 1974, India spelt out the matters over which it would accept the jurisdiction of the ICJ, replacing a similar declaration made in 1959.
Among the no-go matters are “disputes with the government of any state which is or has been a member of the Commonwealth of Nations”.
Pakistan, like India, is a member of the Commonwealth, a grouping of 53 countries most of which are former British colonies.
Also, moving the ICJ amounts to taking disputes with Pakistan to a multilateral forum, which New Delhi tends to avoid.
Experts see the latest move as a sign of India’s growing confidence in getting itself heard on international forums.
- “The situation is grave, it is urgent, and hence we approached this court at such short notice,” senior lawyer Harish Salve, representing India, told the UN court.
- India asked that Mr Jadhav’s death sentence be suspended immediately and be declared illegal under international law.
- Pakistan, said Mr Salve, had repeatedly denied consular access to India and no document of Mr Jadhav’s trial process was given by Islamabad.
- Describing Mr Jadhav’s trial as “farcical”, Mr Salve said the Indian was given a lawyer when the trial was nearly over. “The basic rights of Jadhav were thrown to the winds,” he said.
- Last week, after India challenged the death sentence, Pakistan was asked by the International Court to put it on hold.
- India argued that Pakistan violated the Vienna Convention by denying India consular access to Mr Jadhav 16 times and denying him the right to defend himself.
- India has not approached the international court on any case related to Pakistan since 1971, but the government has said it had no choice as the life of an Indian citizen is at stake.
- Mr Jadhav, 46, arrested in March last year by Pakistan, was held guilty by the country’s military court of spying and subversive activities. India says that Mr Jadhav was kidnapped from Iran, where he was running a business after retiring from the Navy.
- The previous time the two countries faced off at the world court was when Pakistan’s maritime reconnaissance aircraft Atlantique was shot down by the Indian Air Force in the Kutch region in August, 1999; all 16 naval personnel on board were killed.
- After a four-day hearing, a 16-judge bench of the court in 2000 voted to dismiss Pakistan’s claim, saying it had no jurisdiction in the case.
Hearing Started at 13-00 hrs of Monday the 15th May 2017 as per IST time
The Decision will come today at 15:30 hrs as Per IST and as per Hague Netherlands 12-00 hrs. +2.00 GMT as per the News
