India took its neighbour Pakistan by the horns at the International Court of Justice, over the Kulbhushan Jadhav case as relations between both the countries further strain. New Delhi blamed Pak for framing the Indian national on the basis of a “confessional video”, adding he was denied consular access leaving his family and the Indian government clueless of his well-being. It also said the alleged spy could be executed even as the trial goes on.
India strongly doled it out during the court proceedings as it argued it wasn't given a copy of the charges filed against Jadhav, whose “trial” was carried out by a secret military court. Senior advocate Harish Salve, representing India, said, “The need for wholesome compliance is greater when the charges are serious. We want appropriate legal representation for Kulbhushan Jadhav.” He informed the court that Pak denied India 16 requests for consular access to Jadhav. “The graver the charges, the greater the need for continued adherence to the Vienna Convention. Jadhav has been in judicial custody without any communication with his family,” he said. Salve said the rights of Article 36 of the Vienna Convention were sacrosanct, citing the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights which recognises that no one can be arbitrarily deprived of their lives.
The advocate said India's case was solely built around Vienna Convention on Consular Relations and Pakistan's focus on the bilateral agreement for consular access was irrelevant. Pakistan, meanwhile, said India was using the court as a “political theatre”, seeking to dissuade the court from ordering a stay on the execution. The country's entire defence was based around its assertions that ICJ lacked jurisdiction in the case, given it was a “matter of national security”. It said the 2008 bilateral agreement between both the countries for consular access took precedence over VCCR. However, India pointed out that the agreement had not been registered with the UN and was not relevant to a dispute under the Vienna Convention.
Deepak Mittal, India's representative at the hearing, said, “It is clear that Jadhav has been denied the right to be defended by a legal counsel of his choice. He has not been informed of his right to seek consular access.” He said charges against Jadhav were “concocted” and his trial “farcical”, insisting Pak has failed to respond to all Indian demands for information about the case, snubbing requests for documents, including the charge sheet.
Pakistan's representative Mohammad Faisal accused India of “time-wasting and political grandstanding”, adding that the court should decline jurisdiction in the case. Islamabad maintained that Jadhav confessed to being tasked by India's intelligence service with planning, coordinating, and organising espionage and sabotage activities in Balochistan province “aiming to destabilise and wage war against Pakistan.”
ICJ president Ronny Abraham said the tribunal would publicly deliver its decision on whether to grant an emergency stay of execution “as soon as possible.”
