ICJ to start public hearing of Indian spy Jadhav’s case on May 15

The International Court of Justice (ICJ) will hold a public hearing on May 15 in the case pertaining to the conviction of Indian spy Kulbhushan Jadhav, a press release issued by the United Nation’s judicial body on Wednesday evening said.Earlier this week, India moved the ICJ against Pakistan, accusing the latter of violating the Vienna Convention in the case of the Indian spy, who was handed a death sentence by a Field General Court Martial (FGCM) last month.The May 15 hearing will be conducted in two phases with the ICJ hearing India’s observations in the first phase and Pakistan’s observations in the second, the ICJ’s press release said.The hearing, which will be conducted at the Peace Palace in The Hague, will be streamed live, the statement by the ICJ further noted.In an application filed in the ICJ on Monday, India stated that Pakistan has repeatedly denied consular access to Jadhav.India also alleged that “it was not informed of Jadhav’s detention until long after his arrest,” and learned about the death sentence through the media.India requested the ICJ to ensure that Jadhav’s death sentence is suspended and declared a violation of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations.Seeking to restrain Pakistan from “giving effect to the sentence,” India asked the ICJ to direct Pakistan “to take steps to annul the decision of the military court”.Speaking to the media on Wednesday, Adviser to Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz said that Pakistan is reviewing the move by India to approach the ICJ regarding the Jadhav case.Jadhav was arrested on March 3, 2016, through a counter-intelligence operation in Balochistan’s Mashkel area for his involvement in espionage and sabotage activities against Pakistan. He was sentenced to death by the FGCM in April this year.Jadhav was tried by an FGCM under Section 59 of the Pakistan Army Act and Section 3 of the Official Secrets Act of 1923, the statement said.Jadhav confessed before a magistrate and court that he was tasked by Indian spy agency, the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), to plan, coordinate and organise espionage and sabotage activities seeking to destabilise and wage war against Pakistan by impeding the efforts of law enforcement agencies for the restoration of peace in Balochistan and Karachi, the ISPR said.Jadhav’s earlier confessional statement was aired by then head of Inter-Services Public Relations Lt Gen Asim Bajwa, in which the spy admitted his involvement in terror activities in Balochistan and Karachi.
Terming the Indian spy’s arrest a ‘big achievement’, Bajwa said at the time that Jadhav was directly handled by the RAW chief, the Indian National Security Adviser and the RAW joint secretary.”His goal was to disrupt the development of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), with Gwadar port as a special target,” Bajwa had said, adding: “This is nothing short of state-sponsored terrorism… There can be no clearer evidence of Indian interference in Pakistan.””If an intelligence or an armed forces officer of this rank is arrested in another country, it is a big achievement,” Bajwa had said, before going on to play a video of Jadhav confessing to Indian intelligence agency Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) involvement in Balochistan separatist activities in Pakistan.