Pakistan says Kulbhushan Jadhav has appealed against death sentence

Mangalore Today News Network

Pakistan, June 22, 2017 : Indian national Kulbhushan Jadhav, facing execution after being convicted of spying in Pakistan, has sought clemency from the country’s army chief, the Pakistani military said in a statement on Thursday.

 

Jadhav was arrested in Balochistan last year and Pakistani officials claim he has confessed to spying for Indian intelligence services. He was found guilty in a closed hearing in April.

The Inter Services Public Relations also said another “confessional video in which he (Jadhav) can be seen accepting his acts of terrorism and espionage” was released.

“In his plea, Commander Jadhav has admitted his involvement in espionage, terrorist and subversive activities in Pakistan and expressed remorse at the resultant loss of many precious innocent lives and extensive damage to property due to his actions,” the ISPR said.

Jadhav had earlier appealed to the military appellate court which was rejected, it said. “Under the law, he is eligible to appeal for clemency to the COAS (which he has done) and if rejected, subsequently to the President of Pakistan.”

India has maintained Jadhav is not a spy, and that he was kidnapped by Pakistan. It lodged a case against Islamabad in the International Court of Justice (ICTJ) in The Hague last month.

New Delhi has accused Islamabad of violating the Vienna Convention by denying him consular access to Indian officials.

The International Court of Justice recently ordered Pakistan not to execute Jadhav, convicted of spying, until it hears a case brought by India arguing that Islamabad violated a treaty guaranteeing diplomatic assistance to foreigners accused of crimes. The court is the top United Nations legal body for hearing disputes between states and its rulings are binding - though occasionally flouted.

Jadhav, a former officer in the Indian Navy, was arrested in March 2016 in the Pakistani province of Balochistan.

Pakistani authorities say Jadhav confessed to being assigned by India’s intelligence service to plan, coordinate and organise espionage and sabotage activities in Baluchistan “aiming to destabilise and wage war against Pakistan”.

In April, a Pakistani military court sentenced him to death.

courtesy:HT