Pakistan asks ICJ to dismiss India’s plea for relief for Kulbhushan Jadhav

The Hague [Netherlands], Feb 21 (ANI): Pakistan on Thursday urged the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to dismiss India’s plea for relief for its national Kulbhushan Jadhav, who has been sentenced to death by a Pakistani military court in an "opaque trial".
“India’s claim for relief must be dismissed or declared inadmissible,” said Pakistan's Attorney General Anwar Mansoor Khan during the second round of hearing.
The Pakistan advocate made bizarre and irrelevant arguments without answering any substantial questions put forth by India.
He merely dwelt upon the semantics and the language of the arguments and indulged in accusatory behaviour.
The ICJ had rejected five pleas made by Pakistan during the hearing of the Jadhav case, including playing of so-called "confessional statement" of the Indian national and a request for adjourning the hearing citing illness of its ad-hoc judge.
Indian advocate Harish Salve, on Monday, had told ICJ that Jadhav’s death penalty should be annulled and he should be released forthwith by Pakistan which violated the Vienna Convention on consular access.
"India submits that Pakistan has egregiously violated Article 36 of the Vienna Convention and demands that Jadhav be released forthwith," Indian Advocate Harish Salve had argued before the world court.
Salve told the court that Jadhav had been sentenced to death by Pakistan's military court in an "opaque" hearing.
Seeking reversal of his conviction, Salve had also submitted that Pakistan, by not apprising Jadhav, a former Indian Navy officer, of his rights has violated the Vienna Convention.
Since Pakistan is one of the States which exercises death penalty to foreign nationals, the State should make sure that Jadhav should be informed of his rights and more importantly allowed consular access since "death penalty is irreparable", he had stated.
The 48-year-old former naval officer was sentenced to death by a Pakistani military court on charges of espionage and terrorism on April 11, 2017, following which India moved the ICJ, challenging the verdict. Subsequently, on May 18, 2017, a 10-member bench of the ICJ restrained Pakistan from executing Jadhav till the adjudication of the case. (ANI)