29 May, 2017
The International Court of Justice (ICJ), the principal judicial organ of the United Nations, on Thursday asked Pakistan not to hang Kulbhushan Jadhav pending its final judgment, an order that is being hailed as a big win for India.
Party leader Anand Sharma said the orders of the International Court of Justice was a matter of great relief for people in India.
Sixty-one-year-old Salve is one of India's most expensive lawyers took up the case at just 1 rupee and represented Jadhav in The Hague.
He said Pakistan's security is very important to them and they have to maintain it as their fundamental sovereign right.
The ICJ, accepting India's plea, said Pakistan must not hang Jadhav until the court hears the matter in full and that Islamabad must inform the World Court of the steps it has taken to ensure that the Indian national is not executed. The ICJ notes that Pakistan had given no assurance Jadhav would not be executed before the court gives its final decision.
India lodged a case against Pakistan last week, alleging that Islamabad violated the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations by denying Jadhav's right to consular assistance following his arrest a year ago.
After his arrest, Pakistani officials said that he had confessed to spying for Indian intelligence services. India was able to demonstrate Pakistan's disregard for global conventions and its propensity to undermine the rule of law.
Puri: Renowned sand artist Sudarsan Pattnaik's creation to press for "Justice for Kulbhushan Jadhav" in Puri on May 15, 2017.
Pakistan attended the hearing at the ICJ "because of its conviction that the only way to resolve all outstanding issues is through peaceful means", it said.
In the words of Judge Ronny Abraham, the ICJ president, "it becomes irrelevant (for the court) to consider the objections to other possible basis of jurisdiction".
"Major victory for India #KulbhushanJadhav case".
Since Jadhav's arrest in 2016, Pakistan has rejected 16 Indian requests for consular access.
In the month of April, a rare move was taken by Pakistan's Field General Court Martial (FGCM) under the Pakistan Army Act (PAA) which has resulted in awarding the death sentence to the alleged Indian spy Kulbushan Yadav.
Terming the ICJ decision [temporarily staying Kulbhushan Jadhav's execution] a "setback", Shah said the government's negligence is evident.
However, India has denied all claims, saying Jadhav is an "innocent Indian abducted by Pakistan from Iran". ICJ upholds India's right to consular access, put a stay on death execution.
