Kulbhushan Jadhav
Public hearing over the case of Kulbhushan Jadhav, has begun at the International Court of Justice (ICJ). He has been sentenced to death by Pakistan on charges of being an Indian spy. In May 2017, India had moved the ICJ against the "farcical trial" by the military court of Pakistan against 48-year-old Jadhav.
Jadhav, a retired Indian Navy officer, was sentenced to death by a Pakistani military court on charges of espionage and terrorism in April 2017.
Timeline of Kulbhushan Jadhav's case:
Jadhav was apprehended on March 3, 2016 after illegally crossing into Pakistan from Iran, according to Pakistani officials. Indian officials say he was abducted from Iran and taken to Pakistan against his will.
India first approached the ICJ on May 8, 2017 for the "egregious violation" of the provisions of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, 1963 by Pakistan by repeatedly denying it consular access to Jadhav.
A 10-member bench of the ICJ, which was set up after World War II to resolve international disputes, on May 18, 2017 had restrained Pakistan from executing Jadhav till adjudication of the case.
The ICJ has set a timetable for the public hearing in the high-profile case from February 18 to 21, 2019, in The Hague.
Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Raveesh Kumar declined to go into the details of it.
"The oral proceedings on the International Court of Justice are commencing on February 18. India will present its case before the court. Since the matter is sub judice, it is not appropriate for me to state our position in public. Whatever we have to do, we will do in the court," he said in response to a question.
The ICJ will hold public hearings in the Jadhav case from Monday to Thursday, according to the ICJ website.
However, India maintains that Jadhav was kidnapped from Iran where he had business interests after retiring from the Navy.
