New Delhi:

Pakistan’s claim that Indian national Kulbhushan Yadav — sentenced to death by its army court — has refused review of his case and wants to appeal for mercy, is a “continuation of the farce that has been in play for the last four years,” India said today.   

“Kulbhushan Jadhav has been sentenced to execution through a farcical trial.  He remains under custody of Pakistan’s military. He has clearly been coerced to refuse to file a review in his case,” the foreign ministry said.

“In a brazen attempt to scuttle even the inadequate remedy under the Ordinance, Pakistan has obviously coerced Shri Jadhav to forego his rights to seek an implementation of the judgment of the ICJ,” the ministry said.

At a media conference today, Pakistan’s Attorney General Ahmed Irfan said Kulbhushan Jadhav was invited to file a review petition on June 17. But he “preferred to follow up on his pending mercy petition,” he said. Pakistan, he added, has offered him a second consular access.

Pakistan’s moves came almost a year after the International Court of Justice ordered that Islamabad give India consular access to Mr Jadhav and review his death sentence.

On May 20, 2020, Pakistan passed an Ordinance to allow a High Court to review the sentence awarded by their military court.
“They have all along maintained that their laws allowed for effective review and reconsideration while we have protested it all along.

Now, after almost a year, they have made a U-turn and issued an Ordinance to ostensibly provide for some sort of review,” a spokesperson of the foreign ministry said.

“We have already expressed our serious concerns at the content of the Ordinance and how it violates the ICJ judgment. Pakistan is only seeking to create an illusion of remedy,” he added.