Pakistan granted Permission to Kulbhushan Jadhav to meet his wife,
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has granted permission to the convicted Indian spy Kulbhushan Jadhav to meet his wife, months after a request was made by India’s Ministry of External Affairs, an official statement said on Friday. “The Government of Pakistan has decided to arrange a meeting of Commander Kulbhushan Jadhav with his wife, in Pakistan, purely on humanitarian grounds,” spokesperson Mohammad Faisal said in a statement.
“A Note Verbale to this effect has been sent to the Indian high commission in Islamabad, today (Friday).”It is not clear what prompted Islamabad to allow Jadhav’s wife to meet him in Pakistan. There were rumours that the two countries discussed the issue in a recent meeting between Indian External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and the newly appointed Pakistani High Commissioner to New Delhi Sohail Mahmood. Islamabad, however, denied that the Indian spy’s issue came under discussion.
The development, nevertheless, suggests that the two countries might be quietly discussing the subject. Pakistan’s decision to allow the Indian spy to meet his wife could also be linked to the hearing of the case at the International Court of Justice (ICJ). The move may help Pakistan dispel the Indian negative propaganda at the ICJ of not granting access to Jadhav’s family.
Islamabad has said that Jadhav, allegedly an officer with the Indian Navy and attached to the Indian intelligence agency Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), was arrested on March 3, 2016 after he crossed illegally into Pakistan.Friday’s statement also said Jadhav had “confessed” in a Pakistani court “that he was tasked by RAW to plan, coordinate and organise espionage, terrorist and sabotage activities aimed at destabilizing and waging war against Pakistan”.
In a rare move, Jadhav was sentenced to death by a Pakistani military court in April on charges of espionage and terrorism. The International Court of Justice in May halted his execution on India’s appeal. India had requested for a Pakistani visa for Jadhav’s mother, Avantika, who wanted to meet her son in Pakistan. Pakistan has repeatedly denied India consular access to Jadhav on the ground that it was not applicable in cases related to spies.
Jadhav has filed an appeal with Pakistan Army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa to seek clemency, which is still pending. Earlier, the Pakistan Army had said it is close to a decision on the mercy petition of Jadhav. The Jadhav case was taken to the world court on May 8 by India, which accused Pakistan of violating the Vienna Convention and conducting a “farcical trial” for convicting Jadhav without a “shred of evidence”.
