Rejoice with caution

A 11-judge bench of the International Court of Justice has stayed Jadhav’s execution until further notice, while observing that prima facie the Vienna Convention will apply in the case

This is India’s second victory over Pakistan in one month. Quite expectedly and understandably Pakistan is hopping mad. The first was earlier this month when India had approached the International Court of Justice or ICJ accusing Pakistan of violating the Vienna Convention and conducting a "farcical trial" for convicting Kulbhushan Jadhav without a "shred of evidence". India’s decision to approach the ICJ followed Pakistan refusal to grant consular access to Jadhav. Pakistan had turned down India’s request 16 times.
Even while Pakistan was crying foul and questioning ICJ’s jurisdiction, the international court stayed Jadhav’s execution.
Pakistan told the ICJ that Vienna Convention provisions on consular access were not intended for a "spy" involved in terror activities and charged India with using the world body as a stage for "political theatre" in this case.
During its submission to the ICJ,  India had demanded an immediate annulment of Jadhav's death sentence, expressing fears that Pakistan could execute him even before the hearing at the ICJ was over.
Kulbhushan Jadhav was awarded the death sentence by a Pakistani military court last month. He was arrested last year on charges of espionage and subversive activities. India’s stand that  Jadhav was kidnapped from Iran where he was involved in business activities after retiring from the Indian Navy, was refuted by Pakistan. It claimed to have  arrested Jadhav from its restive Balochistan province.
India’s second victory was earlier this week when a  11-judge bench of the International Court of Justice on Thursday stayed Jadhav’s  execution until further notice, while observing that prima facie the Vienna Convention will apply in the case. The court  pronounced its verdict on India’s plea seeking provisional measures restraining the execution of Jadhav by Pakistan.
In its appeal to the ICJ, India enumerated four provisional measures namely, declare the death sentence awarded to Jadhav illegal; being violative of international law and treaty rights; restrain Pakistan from acting in violation of the Vienna Convention and international law by giving effect to the sentence or the conviction in any manner; and if Pakistan is unable to annul the decision, direct it to release the convicted Indian national forthwith.
India had also said  that Jadhav had no access to legal counsel in Pakistan and that his  alleged confession admitting his crimes had been extracted forcefully when he was in military custody.
Pakistan on its part questioned India’s right to  invoke the jurisdiction of the UN's highest court. It contended that the Vienna Convention does not provide for matters relating to spies, terrorists and those who indulge in espionage.
The ICJ ruling in favour of India and India’s maturity in approaching the international court has amply demonstrated that India will follow the correct route and not be dragged down by Pakistan’s bullying tactics. More importantly it has shown up India in a favourable light on the world stage.
It is after 18 years that the two neighbours were fighting it out at the ICJ. Last time, it was Pakistan moving the  ICJ seeking its intervention over the shooting down of its naval aircraft. The ICJ had then said that it had no authority to decide the case.
More than the order that is clearly historic,  India’s move to approach the ICJ that has won it kudos.
Internationally it is not so much about winning or losing but about the road India took. The fact that the ICJ ruled in its favour simply vindicates its stand. It is also a major boost to India’s diplomatic dexterity and skill. The UN Court verdict was seen as a virtual snub to Pakistan when the ICJ clamped down its plea.
Therefore if India and Indians are rejoicing it is not without reason.
Back home, India’s move has underlined the Modi government’s determination do do what it takes for its citizens particularly those stranded outside. The move was ofcourse for Jadhav’s life but it was also a determined government’s action of stepping in whenever necessary in its fight for justice. And if the opponent is Pakistan then the battle lines are clearly drawn. Credence is lent to this by the assurance External Affairs minister Sushma Swaraj’s tweeted  to say  that the government will leave no stone unturned to save Kulbhushan Jadhav.
That Pakistan is an errant neighbor is a given. Of late its activities be it on or across the border and exporting terror are making Indians angry. As a nation the Government has to and must tread with caution but Pakistan defying India at every possible turn is making Indians impatient. They now want the government under Prime Minister Narendra Modi to show its mettle and teach Pakistan a lesson once and for all. They see it as a wayward neighbor that has had its way and needs to be reined in sooner than later.
Therefore, even while the legal route is being appreciated, majority of Indian feel that this is merely a side show while the real game is yet to begin. Worse still, skeptics feel that India has willy nilly provided a handle to Pakistan to beat India with in future. The fear is not unfounded. The Vienna Convention  requires that the person arrested be informed of their right to consular access and also requires that this access be supplied at the earliest.
Under the circumstances, Pakistan can demand consular rights for terrorists picked up for instance in the troubled state of Jammu and Kashmir. Now that India has shown the way and ICJ delivered a verdict for consular access, nothing stops Pakistan from suddenly making an application against India before the ICJ.
So there is a kind of a fear that even while the ICJ verdict is laudable it may turn out to be one that Pakistan uses to its advantage. More importantly, the top of the mind question is will Pakistan honour the verdict?
In a clear defiance of the verdict Pakistan has said that  Court’s decision has not changed the status of Jadhav’s case in any manner. A spokesman of the Foreign Office has stated on record that Pakistan does not accept the jurisdiction of the ICJ in matters related to the country’s national security. Therefore, even while India and Indians rejoice they must rejoice with caution.

The writer is a senior Indian journalist, political commentator and columnist of The Independent. She can be reached at: ([email protected])

 

Rejoice with caution

A 11-judge bench of the International Court of Justice has stayed Jadhavs execution until further notice, while observing that prima facie the Vienna Convention will apply in the case

This is Indias second victory over Pakistan in one month. Quite expectedly and understandably Pakistan is hopping mad. The first was earlier this month when India had approached the International Court of Justice or ICJ accusing Pakistan of violating the Vienna Convention and conducting a farcical trial for convicting Kulbhushan Jadhav without a shred of evidence. Indias decision to approach the ICJ followed Pakistan refusal to grant consular access to Jadhav. Pakistan had turned down Indias request 16 times. Even while Pakistan was crying foul and questioning ICJs jurisdiction, the international court stayed Jadhavs execution. Pakistan told the ICJ that Vienna Convention provisions on consular access were not intended for a spy involved in terror activities and charged India with using the world body as a stage for political theatre in this case. During its submission to the ICJ, India had demanded an immediate annulment of Jadhavs death sentence, expressing fears that Pakistan could execute him even before the hearing at the ICJ was over. Kulbhushan Jadhav was awarded the death sentence by a Pakistani military court last month. He was arrested last year on charges of espionage and subversive activities. Indias stand that Jadhav was kidnapped from Iran where he was involved in business activities after retiring from the Indian Navy, was refuted by Pakistan. It claimed to have arrested Jadhav from its restive Balochistan province. Indias second victory was earlier this week when a 11-judge bench of the International Court of Justice on Thursday stayed Jadhavs execution until further notice, while observing that prima facie the Vienna Convention will apply in the case. The court pronounced its verdict on Indias plea seeking provisional measures restraining the execution of Jadhav by Pakistan. In its appeal to the ICJ, India enumerated four provisional measures namely, declare the death sentence awarded to Jadhav illegal; being violative of international law and treaty rights; restrain Pakistan from acting in violation of the Vienna Convention and international law by giving effect to the sentence or the conviction in any manner; and if Pakistan is unable to annul the decision, direct it to release the convicted Indian national forthwith. India had also said that Jadhav had no access to legal counsel in Pakistan and that his alleged confession admitting his crimes had been extracted forcefully when he was in military custody. Pakistan on its part questioned Indias right to invoke the jurisdiction of the UNs highest court. It contended that the Vienna Convention does not provide for matters relating to spies, terrorists and those who indulge in espionage. The ICJ ruling in favour of India and Indias maturity in approaching the international court has amply demonstrated that India will follow the correct route and not be dragged down by Pakistans bullying tactics. More importantly it has shown up India in a favourable light on the world stage. It is after 18 years that the two neighbours were fighting it out at the ICJ. Last time, it was Pakistan moving the ICJ seeking its intervention over the shooting down of its naval aircraft. The ICJ had then said that it had no authority to decide the case. More than the order that is clearly historic, Indias move to approach the ICJ that has won it kudos. Internationally it is not so much about winning or losing but about the road India took. The fact that the ICJ ruled in its favour simply vindicates its stand. It is also a major boost to Indias diplomatic dexterity and skill. The UN Court verdict was seen as a virtual snub to Pakistan when the ICJ clamped down its plea. Therefore if India and Indians are rejoicing it is not without reason. Back home, Indias move has underlined the Modi governments determination do do what it takes for its citizens particularly those stranded outside. The move was ofcourse for Jadhavs life but it was also a determined governments action of stepping in whenever necessary in its fight for justice. And if the opponent is Pakistan then the battle lines are clearly drawn. Credence is lent to this by the assurance External Affairs minister Sushma Swarajs tweeted to say that the government will leave no stone unturned to save Kulbhushan Jadhav. That Pakistan is an errant neighbor is a given. Of late its activities be it on or across the border and exporting terror are making Indians angry. As a nation the Government has to and must tread with caution but Pakistan defying India at every possible turn is making Indians impatient. They now want the government under Prime Minister Narendra Modi to show its mettle and teach Pakistan a lesson once and for all. They see it as a wayward neighbor that has had its way and needs to be reined in sooner than later. Therefore, even while the legal route is being appreciated, majority of Indian feel that this is merely a side show while the real game is yet to begin. Worse still, skeptics feel that India has willy nilly provided a handle to Pakistan to beat India with in future. The fear is not unfounded. The Vienna Convention requires that the person arrested be informed of their right to consular access and also requires that this access be supplied at the earliest. Under the circumstances, Pakistan can demand consular rights for terrorists picked up for instance in the troubled state of Jammu and Kashmir. Now that India has shown the way and ICJ delivered a verdict for consular access, nothing stops Pakistan from suddenly making an application against India before the ICJ. So there is a kind of a fear that even while the ICJ verdict is laudable it may turn out to be one that Pakistan uses to its advantage. More importantly, the top of the mind question is will Pakistan honour the verdict? In a clear defiance of the verdict Pakistan has said that Courts decision has not changed the status of Jadhavs case in any manner. A spokesman of the Foreign Office has stated on record that Pakistan does not accept the jurisdiction of the ICJ in matters related to the countrys national security. Therefore, even while India and Indians rejoice they must rejoice with caution. The writer is a senior Indian journalist, political commentator and columnist of The Independent. She can be reached at: ([email protected])