India's Dalveer Bhandari re-elected as ICJ judge after UK pulls out

New York [United States], Nov 21 (ANI): India's nominee Dalveer Bhandari was re-elected as the fifth judge to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) after the United Kingdom withdrew the nomination of Christopher Greenwood on Monday.

According to the U.N. News, Bhandari received the absolute majority of votes in elections at the Security Council and the General Assembly.

Expressing her happiness over the victory of Indian nominee at the ICJ election, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj took to her Twitter page to say, "Vande Matram - India wins election to the International Court of Justice. JaiHind. #ICJ"

Vande Matram - India wins election to the International Court of Justice. JaiHind. #ICJ

— Sushma Swaraj (@SushmaSwaraj) November 20, 2017

Bhandari joins Ronny Abraham of France, Chaloka Beyani (Zambia), Antonio Augusto Cançado Trindade (Brazil), Nawaf Salam (Lebanon), and Abdulqawi Ahmed Yusuf (Somalia) as the five judges who will serve along with ten other judges at the ICJ.

Their nine-year terms will begin on February 6, 2018.

After withdrawing their candidate, the U.K. will not have a judge on the bench of the ICJ for the first time in its 71-year history .

Earlier, India reportedly called out the U.K. for its 'undemocratic' and 'cabalistic' tactics to win elections at the ICJ.

Established in 1945, the ICJ is composed of 15 judges, who are elected by an absolute majority in both the General Assembly and Security Council. (ANI)