Islamabad, April 20:
Indian national Kulbhushan Jadhav, currently imprisoned in Pakistan on charges of espionage, was granted consular access only after the 2019 ruling by the International Court of Justice (ICJ. However, this did not extend to granting him the right to appeal his conviction in a higher court, Pakistan’s Defence Ministry informed the country’s Supreme Court on Thursday, as reported by Dawn.
The statement was made before a constitution bench hearing a case concerning Pakistani citizens convicted by military courts for their alleged involvement in the May 9, 2023, riots, which erupted following the arrest of former Prime Minister and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Imran Khan. During proceedings, the Defence Ministry’s counsel was questioned on whether Jadhav had been granted an appeal mechanism, and if not, why similar leniency could not be extended to Pakistani citizens tried by military courts.
Responding to the query, the government counsel clarified that Pakistan had only allowed consular access to Jadhav after being found in violation of Article 36 of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations. This provision mandates consular officials of a foreign nation to be allowed access to their nationals under arrest, including the right to visit, communicate with, and arrange legal representation.
Further, the court was informed that Pakistan had amended its domestic laws following the ICJ verdict to allow a limited form of review of military court decisions, aligning with international obligations under the Vienna Convention.
Kulbhushan Jadhav was apprehended by Pakistani authorities in Balochistan in March 2016 and sentenced to death by a military court in 2017, allegedly for working as an agent of India’s Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) and collaborating with Baloch separatists. India has consistently rejected the charges, asserting that Jadhav was kidnapped from Iran, where he was conducting legitimate business.
A controversial video of Jadhav allegedly “confessing” to espionage was released by Pakistan, which India dismissed as a forced statement under duress.
India approached the ICJ in 2017, which led to a stay on Jadhav’s execution and a significant diplomatic victory for New Delhi. In its verdict, the ICJ held that Pakistan had breached its obligations under international law by denying India consular access and failing to ensure a fair trial.
“The Court finds that Pakistan deprived India of the right to communicate with and have access to Kulbhushan Jadhav, to visit him in detention and to arrange for his legal representation and thereby breached obligations incumbent upon it under the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations,” the ICJ stated in its ruling.
Despite the global court’s ruling, the question of Jadhav’s right to appeal remains unresolved, as the Pakistani Supreme Court deliberates on broader issues concerning military justice and fundamental rights for its own citizens.