India today firmly rejected the bill passed by Pakistan’s Parliament to provide the right of review and reconsideration in the case of former Indian Navy officer Kulbhushan Jadhav, who is on death row in the neighbouring country, saying the law simply codifies the shortcomings of the previous ordinance.
”Nothing could have been further from the truth. As stated earlier, the ordinance did not create the machinery for an effective review and reconsideration of Shri Jadhav’s case as mandated by the judgement of the ICJ,” Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said in response to questions.
He reiterated that Pakistan continued to deny unimpeded and unhindered consular access to Jadhav and has failed to create an atmosphere in which a fair trial could be conducted. He said India has repeatedly called upon Pakistan to abide by the letter and spirit of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) judgement in Jadhav’s case.
Jadhav has been in a Pakistani jail for the last five years on charges of spying and terrorism.