NEW DELHI: The case of convicted Indian spy Kulbhushan Jadhav will take another turn today as India has submitted its initial pleadings, known as ‘memorial’, to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague. On June 16 this year, the ICJ turned down India’s request to give it six months to file pleadings before the court in the case. Pakistan’s Attorney General Ashtar Ausaf said India had sought until December to file its pleadings but the court allowed it until September 13 to do so. The ICJ also set December 13 as the deadline for Pakistan to submit its counter-pleadings in the case. On May 18, the ICJ ordered Pakistan to halt the execution of Jadhav, an on-duty Indian navy officer working for Indian spy agency RAW who was arrested from Balochistan in March 2016, until a final decision in the proceedings. “Pakistan shall take all measures at its disposal to ensure that Jadhav is not executed pending the final decision in these proceedings,” ordered Judge Ronny Abraham, president of the court, as he announced the decision.
Published in Daily Times, September 14th 2017.
