Big win for India: ICJ stays execution of Kulbhushan Yadav by Pakistan
New Delhi: In a big win for India, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) pronounced its verdict on the Kulbhushan Jadhav case saying that Kulbhushan Yadav should not be executed before the final verdict of the court. Earlier, during its submission, India had demanded the immediate suspension of Jadhav's death sentence, expressing fears that Pakistan could execute him even before the hearing at the ICJ was over. India's forceful submission was made as the ICJ began hearing the case of the 46-year-old former Navy officer, who was arrested on March 3 last year and sentenced to death by a Pakistani military court on charges of espionage and subversive activities. The Jadhav case was taken to the world court on May 8 by India, which accused Pakistan of violating the Vienna Convention and conducting a "farcical trial" for convicting Jadhav without a "shred of evidence". On its part, Pakistan told the ICJ that Vienna Convention provisions on consular access were not intended for a "spy" involved in terror activities and charged India with using the world body as a stage for "political theatre" in the Jadhav case. The two neighbours last had a face-off at the ICJ 18 years ago when Islamabad sought its intervention over the shooting down of its naval aircraft. — PTI
