Kulbhushan Jadhav Case: Pakistan to Amend Army Act to Allow Him to Appeal in Civilian Court

In July, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) had on July 17, 2019, ordered a stay on his execution and further directed Pakistan to provide 'indispensable condition' for an effective review and reconsideration of his trial and conviction. 

Updated: November 13, 2019 1:40 PM IST

By India.com News Desk | Edited by Karan Manral

Kulbhushan Jadhav
Kulbhushan Jadhav

New Delhi: In a major development, the Pakistan government will amend the Pakistan Army Act to implement the International Court of Justice (ICJ) verdict in the Kulbhushan Jadhav case. The amendment will give Jadhav the right to appeal against his conviction in a civilian court against his conviction in a military court, which also handed him a death sentence for ‘espionage.’

According to Pakistani media, the said act forbade those tried or being tried by military courts from filing appeals in a civilian court. It added that a ‘special amendment’ was being made for Kulbhushan Jadhav

In a massive win for India, the ICJ, had on July 17, 2019, ordered a stay on his execution and further directed Pakistan to provide ‘indispensable condition’ for an effective review and reconsideration of his trial and conviction.

Kulbhushan Jadhav, an Indian national and a former Indian Navy official was arrested from Pakistan’s Balochistan province on charges of terrorism and spying for India’s Research and Analysis Wing (R&AW) on March 3, 2016. India, however, disputed this account and alleged that Jadhav had, in fact, been abducted from Iran and that subsequently, his presence in Pakistan ‘had never been credibly explained.’

He was convicted of his charges and sentenced to death by a Pakistan military court on April 10, 2017 after which India moved the ICJ on May 8, 2017, alleging that Jadhav’s life was under threat in Pakistan. The court, on May 18, 2017, stayed his execution pending a final judgment in the case.

On December 25, 2017, Jadhav’s wife and mother flew to Islamabad to meet him. During the meet, the two are said to have been troubled by the Pakistani officials.

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