Pak offers India consular access to Kulbhushan Jadhav

Pakistan has finally offered India consular access to former Indian Navy officer Kulbhushan Jadhav, who has been in the death row in the neighbouring country since April 2017.

Islamabad has conveyed to New Delhi that India's consular officials in Pakistan can meet Kulbhushan Jadhav on Friday. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) in New Delhi on Thursday acknowledged receipt of the proposal from Islamabad, but maintained that it was being evaluated currently and a response would be sent to the government of the neighbouring country later.

The International Court of Justice (ICJ) on July 17 asked Pakistan to allow consular officials of High Commission of India in Islamabad to meet Jadhav. It also asked Pakistan Government to inform the former Indian Navy officer about his rights under Vienna Convention.

“We have received a proposal from Pakistan. We are at this time evaluating the proposal in the light of the judgement of the ICJ,” Raveesh Kumar, spokesperson of the MEA, told journalists in New Delhi. “We will maintain communication with Pakistan through diplomatic channels.”

Jadhav had been in the custody of Pakistan Army since at least March 3, 2016. A military court had convicted him of working for India's external spy agency Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) and of fomenting militancy in Baluchistan province of Pakistan. The military court had also awarded death sentence to him on April 10, 2017.

India moved the ICJ against Pakistan on May 10, 2017. The court had on May 18, 2017 stayed his execution pending its final judgement in the case.

The ICJ on July 17 delivered its judgement, concluding that Pakistan had violated Article 36 of the Vienna Convention by not informing India about his arrest immediately after taking him into custody.

It also held that Pakistan had violated the Vienna Convention by declining India's request for consular access to incarcerated Jadhav. It asked Pakistan to review the conviction of Jadhav, but rejected India's plea for his acquittal, release and repatriation from the neighbouring country.

New Delhi last week conveyed to Islamabad that Pakistan must grant India consular access to Jadhav, “in full compliance with the judgement of the ICJ and in full conformity with Vienna Convention on Consular Relations 1963.”