The International Court of Justice (ICJ) is set to announce its verdict in the Kulbhushan Jadhav case at 6.30 pm (IST), in a public setting at the Peace Palace in The Hague, Netherlands today. President of the Court, Judge Abdulqawi Ahmed Yusuf, will be reading out the verdict.
As India awaits the judgement with bated breath, the friends of the retired Navy officer, Kulbhushan Jadhav, who was arbitrarily arrested by Pakistan in 2016 for being an ‘Indian spy’, were seen wearing t-shirts, which read, ‘India with Kulbhushan’ as they prayed for his safe return in Mumbai.
#Mumbai: Kulbhushan Jadhav’s friends wearing ‘India with Kulbhushan’ t-shirts offer special prayers ahead of International Court of Justice’s verdict today. pic.twitter.com/OJtnO0wWwz
— ANI (@ANI) July 17, 2019
His friends have expressed hope that today’s verdict would be in India’s favour and would facilitate Jadhav’s safe return.
While speaking to the news agency, ANI, Jadhav’s friend Arvind Singh said, ” We have high hopes that Jahdhav will soon return to India. I am happy about the fact that our country has represented this case very well in the ICJ. (Harish) Salve Ji has done a great job. I am hopeful that the ICJ will give judgment in our favour. In the last three years, Pakistan has shown lots of doctored videos which were not accepted by the ICJ. Till now Pakistan has no solid evidence against Jadhav. ”
Speaking in the same lines, Jadhav’s other friend, Vandana Tulsidas Pawar also expressed hope that justice will be served in ICJ today.”I am hopeful that Jadhav will be free soon. Pakistan is a lier. We have high hopes from ICJ today. My only fear is what next Pakistan will do?.”
Meanwhile, several people in many parts of the country, resorted to demonstrations to express their anger towards Pakistan and support for the retired Navy officer, who had been sentenced to death by the Pakistan Military court on April 2017 on charges of espionage and terrorism.
The MEA had earlier reiterated India’s commitment to making all possible efforts to “secure and protect” the rights of Jadhav.
The 49-year-old Jadhav was sentenced to death by the military court of Pakistan in April 2017 on alleged espionage charges. Pakistan’s intelligence agency ISI had kidnapped Jadhav from Iran.
India had first approached the ICJ on May 8, 2017, for egregious violation of the provisions of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, 1963 by Pakistan in the matter.
The court had on May 18, 2017, indicated provisional measures as requested by India and passed an order obligating Pakistan to not carry out the death sentence that was awarded to Jadhav through a farcical trial by the military court of Pakistan.
Pakistan claimed its security forces arrested Jadhav from Balochistan province on March 3, 2016, where he had reportedly entered from Iran. However, India maintains that Jadhav was kidnapped from Iran where he had business interests after retiring from the navy. Jadhav’s sentencing had evoked a sharp reaction in India.
