ISLAMABAD – The mother and wife of Kulbhushan Jadhav, an Indian spy sentenced to death for espionage in Pakistan, have been issued visas by the High Commission in New Delhi on humanitarian grounds.
The Foreign Office said on Wednesday that the visas were issued after Pakistan decided to allow Jadhav’s mother to visit him, in addition to his wife. The two women will cross into Pakistan from the Wagah border to meet the Indian spy on December 25 and will be accompanied by an Indian diplomat.
Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi issued the visas to the mother and wife of Commander Jadhav to visit Islamabad to meet him, today.
— Dr Mohammad Faisal (@ForeignOfficePk) December 20, 2017
Earlier this week, Pakistan’s National Security Committee cleared visas for Kulbhushan Jadhav’s mother Avantika Jadhav and his wife.
The development comes weeks before the International Court of Justice is to hear India’s appeal against the death sentence on grounds that it was delivered “without giving the Indian national (Kulbushan Jadhav) an opportunity to defend himself”.
https://en.dailypakistan.com.pk/headline/pakistani-forces-arrest-indian-spy-from-balochistan/
Jadhav, who was captured by Pakistani security forces on March 3, 2016, in Balochistan, was sentenced to death by a military tribunal earlier this year for his involvement in terrorism and espionage. His appeals against the conviction have been rejected by the military appellate court and his mercy petition has been lying with Army Chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa.
He is a Commander rank serving officer in Indian navy as per his own statement. An Indian passport bearing his assumed name Hussein Mubarak Patel – a fictitious activity to conceal his original identity, had been recovered from his possession.
In his confessional statements released to media, Jadhav disclosed his clandestine mission of espionage leading to sabotage activity in restive province of Balochistan, Karachi and elsewhere in Pakistan.
https://en.dailypakistan.com.pk/headline/information-minister-pervez-rasheed-dg-ispr-gen-asim-bajwa-hold-joint-press-conference/
India, on the other hand, claimed that he was “a retired Naval officer, who had been kidnapped from Iran where he was in connection with his business”.
Jadhav had been tried by a Field General Court Martial, which handed down capital punishment to him. The Indian government hurriedly took the issue to International Court of Justice (ICJ). The latter, on May 18th 2017, passed order staying execution of Jadhav.
India has challenged Pakistan’s refusal to grant consular access to the spy in the International Court of Justice (ICJ). The ICJ is hearing the case and has restrained the Pakistan government from executing Jadhav till it decides the case.
