Kulbhushan Jadhav case: India presents its arguments before the ICJ

The International Court of Justice (ICJ) began hearing the case of Kulbhushan Jadhav at The Hague today (Monday). Pakistan has sentenced Jadhav to death for spying while India claims he is not a spy and is challenging his death sentence. The Indian authorities have not yet responded to six questions filed by Pakistan, claiming that Commander Jadhav is a businessman who was kidnapped from Iran and tortured to a point where he was forced to confess that he was an agent of the Indian spy agency Research and Analysis Wing (RAW). The Indian lawyers presented their arguments first. Pakistan's legal team will give its replies tomorrow (Tuesday). Lawyer Khaver Qureshi, who is fighting Pakistan’s case at the ICJ, met Attorney General Anwar Mansoor and his team and discussed the case. Qureshi also met the foreign office representative and Pakistani ambassador. Related: Pakistan submits reply before UN’s top court in the Kulbhushan Jadhav case Earlier in the day, Dr Mohammad Faisal, the foreign office spokesperson, was confident about the outcome of the case. Pakistan’s case is strong, he said. According to embassy sources, the British forensic agency has declared that Jadhav’s passport was authentic. The Indian government issued Jadhav a passport in the name of Hussain Mubarak Patel. It was on this passport that he left the country on foreign trips 17 times from Delhi and Mumbai. The Indian citizen was arrested on March 3, 2016, from Balochistan on allegations of espionage and terrorism. During his subsequent trial in the military court, Jadhav confessed to his involvement in terrorist plots. The army chief endorsed on April 10, 2017 the death penalty for Jadhav. On June 22 the same year, he filed a mercy petition against the death penalty in which he confessed to his involvement in espionage and terrorism plots. Follow SAMAA English on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.