The Pakistan Foreign Office on Thursday accused India of blocking the implementation of the International Court of Justice’s verdict in spy Kulbhushan Jadhav’s case by not cooperating in the legal proceedings in the Islamabad High Court.

“Our understanding is that India is making every possible effort to frustrate Pakistan’s efforts for implementation of the ICJ judgment and use Kulbhushan Jadhav’s case as a propaganda tool against Pakistan,” Foreign Office spokesman Zahid Hafeez Chaudhri said at the weekly media briefing.

Jadhav, who was arrested in 2016 in Balochistan, was sentenced to death by a military court in 2017 after being convicted of espionage.

The Pakistan government had on June 17, after the enactment of ‘the International Court of Justice (Review and Reconsideration) Ordinance, 2020’ invited Jadhav to file for a review and reconsideration of his conviction and sentencing by a military court on charges of espionage. The spy and the Indian High Commission were asked to arrange legal representation for him.

The special legislation allowed foreigners, their authorised representatives or consular officials of the mission of their country, to seek a review by the High Court of conviction and sentences awarded by military court in instances in which ICJ has ruled about their rights under Vienna Convention on Consular Relations of 1963 or they feel that they had been deprived of their rights under the Convention.

The Indian High Commission was also provided a second consular access to him in July for discussing the case. The consular officials, who came for the meeting abruptly walked off, protesting over the presence of a security guard in the room. A third opportunity was offered, but India has not availed it as yet.

https://www.dawn.com/news/1576779/fo-blames-india-for-obstructing-icj-verdict-implementation