Pakistan gives Kulbhushan Jadhav right to appeal against death sentence

Pakistan on Wednesday passed a bill at a Parliament joint session to give death-row prisoner Kulbhushan Jadhav the right to appeal against his death sentence as per the decision of the International Court of Justice (ICJ).

Jadhav, a 51-year-old retired Indian Navy officer, was sentenced to death by a Pakistani military court on charges of espionage and terrorism in April 2017. India had approached the ICJ against Pakistan for denial of consular access to Jadhav and challenging the death sentence.

Pakistan had in June this year adopted a bill to give the right of appeal to Jadhav as per the ICJ ruling. But India had at the time asked Pakistan to address the “shortcomings” in the bill, saying the proposed law does not create a mechanism to reconsider it as mandated by the ICJ.