New Delhi: In a huge win for India, Prime MInister Narendra Modi hailed the International Court Of Justice (ICJ) ruling in the Kulbhushan Jadhav case and said on Wednesday that truth and justice have prevailed through the verdict which stayed the death sentence awarded to the Indian national by Pakistan .
PM Narendra Modi’s reaction came hours after The Hague-based ICJ asked Pakistan to put a hold on the death sentence awarded to Kulbhushan Jadhav by a military court and also granted consular access to India, observing that “Pakistan deprived India of the right to communicate with and have access to Kulbhushan Jadhav, to visit him in detention and to arrange for his legal representation and thereby breached obligations incumbent upon it under Vienna Convention on Consular Relations.”
PM Modi congratulated the ICJ on Twitter, saying that the court’s verdict was based on an extensive study of facts. He added that the Indian government will work for the safety of every Indian.
“We welcome today’s verdict in the ICJ. Truth and justice have prevailed. Congratulations to the ICJ for a verdict based on extensive study of facts. I am sure Kulbhushan Jadhav will get justice. Our Government will always work for the safety and welfare of every Indian,” PM Modi tweeted.
We welcome today’s verdict in the @CIJ_ICJ. Truth and justice have prevailed. Congratulations to the ICJ for a verdict based on extensive study of facts. I am sure Kulbhushan Jadhav will get justice.
Our Government will always work for the safety and welfare of every Indian.
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) July 17, 2019
The court said, “A continued stay of execution constitutes an indispensable condition for the effective review and reconsideration of the conviction and sentence of Mr Kulbhushan Sudhir Jadhav.”
The ICJ also asked Pakistan to allow India consular access to Kulbhushan Jadhav. The Court delivered its verdict with 15 judges in favour of the decision. Only the Pakistani judge disagreed with the judgment that was delivered by ICJ President, Judge Abdulqawi Ahmed Yusuf.
Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, too, also welcomed the Kulbhushan Jadhav ICJ verdict, saying that it was a big victory for India.
“The ICJ directing Pakistan to grant consular access to Jadhav and asking them to review the conviction and the sentence is a welcome decision. It is also a big win for PM Sh.@narendramodi’s diplomatic initiative,” Rajnath Singh said.
49-year-old Jadhav was arrested by Pakistan in March 2016 and accused of “espionage”, a charge India has rubbished. A year later, he was sentenced to death by a Pakistani military court.
