Pakistan on Friday rejected India’s demand that an Indian lawyer or a Queen’s counsel needs to be appointed for death-row prisoner Kulbhushan Jadhav to make sure a free and truthful trial on this nation.
Overseas Workplace spokesperson Zahid Hafeez Chaudhri, replying to a query throughout a media briefing, mentioned India has been persistently making the “unrealistic demand” of permitting a lawyer from exterior Pakistan to signify Jadhav, sentenced to demise by a Pakistani army court docket for alleged spying.
Additionally learn: Pak parliament extends ordinance enabling Kulbhushan Jadhav to appeal conviction
“We’ve got knowledgeable India that solely these legal professionals are allowed to seem in Pakistani courts who’ve a license to observe legislation in Pakistan. That is in keeping with worldwide authorized observe. There may be no change on this place,” he mentioned.
Queen’s Counsel is a barrister or advocate, appointed Counsel to the UK Crown on the advice of the Lord Chancellor.
Earlier this month, the Islamabad Excessive Court docket in Pakistan directed the federal authorities to offer India one other likelihood to nominate a lawyer to signify Jadhav and adjourned listening to for a month.
Pakistan’s Parliament on Tuesday prolonged for 4 months an ordinance that allowed Jadhav to file an attraction in opposition to his conviction in a excessive court docket as required by the Worldwide Court docket of Justice (ICJ).
Ministry of Exterior Affairs Spokesperson Anurag Srivastava mentioned the federal government of Pakistan has not been capable of fulfil its obligations on implementation of the ICJ judgment in letter and spirit.
Additionally learn: Kulbhushan Jadhav should get an Indian lawyer: Govt
“It has not but addressed the core points, which embody provision of all paperwork associated to the case, offering unconditional and unimpeded consular entry to Kulbhusan Jadhav and appointment of an Indian lawyer or a Queen’s counsel to make sure a free and truthful trial,” he mentioned at a web-based media briefing on Thursday.
In 2017, India approached the ICJ in opposition to Pakistan for denial of consular entry to Jadhav and difficult the demise sentence handed to him by a army court docket.
The Hague-based ICJ dominated in July 2019 that Pakistan should undertake an “efficient evaluation and reconsideration” of the conviction and sentence of Jadhav and in addition to grant consular entry to India with out additional delay.
India has slammed Pakistan for adopting a “farcical” method in denying accessible authorized cures to Jadhav in opposition to his demise sentence in contravention of the ICJ order.
Fifty-year-old retired Indian Navy officer Jadhav was sentenced to demise by a Pakistani army court docket on fees of espionage and terrorism in April 2017.
To a query about elevating Gilgit-Baltistan’s standing to that of a full-fledged province, the Overseas Workplace spokesperson mentioned that reforms in GB had been an ongoing course of that embody political, administrative and financial reforms.
“It (granting standing of a province) has been a long-standing demand of the folks of Giligit Baltistan.
These reforms will proceed in keeping with the wants of the folks of Gilgit Baltistan,” he mentioned.
India has clearly conveyed to Pakistan that all the union territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, together with the areas of Gilgit and Baltistan, are an integral a part of the nation by advantage of its absolutely authorized and irrevocable accession.
