A day after the International Court of Justice (ICJ) held Pakistan guilty of violating the Vienna Convention, Islamabad said on Friday that it will grant consular access to Kulbhushan Jadhav.
"Pursuant to the decision of the ICJ, Commander Kulbushan Jadhav has been informed of his rights under Article 36, Paragraph 1(b) of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations. As a responsible state, Pakistan will grant consular access to Commander Kulbushan Jadhav according to Pakistani laws, for which modalities are being worked out," said a statement released by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Pakistan's response came a day after Indian Foreign Minister S Jaishankar said Jadhav was innocent and vowed to get him released. "Pakistan was found to have deprived India of the right to communicate with Jadhav, have access to him, visit him in detention and arrange his legal representation," said Jaishankar.
"His forced confession without legal representation and due process will not change this reality," he said. "We once again call upon Pakistan to release and repatriate him forthwith," he added.
The case is seen as a significant move that can rekindle relations between India and Pakistan. Tension between the neighbouring countries has been escalating since the Pulwama attack.
ICJ verdict
Fifteen out of the 16 judge ICJ panel agreed with India's argument on Tuesday, that Pakistan had violated the Vienna Convention by denying consular access to Jadhav. The panel ordered a stay on his execution.
The panel also ordered Pakistan to have an "effective review and reconsideration of the conviction and sentence" given to Jadhav
In March 2016, Jadhav, who is also a former Indian Navy officer, was arrested by Pakistan and was sentenced to death a year later by the country's military court for alleged 'espionage' and 'terrorism'. India had approached the ICJ after diplomatic talks failed between the two countries.
