ICJ to resume hearing in Kulbhushan Jadhav case

The International Court of Justice (ICJ) is set to resume on Wednesday hearing in the case of alleged Indian spy Kulbhushan Jadhav sentenced to death by Pakistan.

The judicial body of the United Nations had earlier fixed time limits for the filing of the initial pleadings in the case.

The court had fixed June 13, 2017, September 13 and December 13 as dates for India to file its documents and for Pakistan to file counter-documents. The order was made after taking into account the views of the parties, said an ICJ statement.

Jadhav was awarded capital sentence by a Pakistan military court for espionage.

India challenged the verdict in the top UN court, accusing Pakistan of violating the Vienna Convention by failing to provide Jadhav with consular access which it said was in breach of international human rights laws.

Delhi also appealed to the court to impose emergency measures for Jadhav's execution to be suspended until the legal battle in The Hague concludes.

On May 18, the ICJ ruled that Jadhav must not be put to death by Islamabad until the ICJ has had enough time to pass the final judgement in the case, and ordered a stay against the execution.

Pakistan says Jadhav was arrested during a counter-intelligence raid in Balochistan in March 2016.

He "confessed" to being a spy for India's Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) in a video released by Pakistan.

--IANS

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