Prime Minister Narendra Modi today welcomed the International Court of Justice`s (ICJ) verdict to put on hold the death sentence of Kulbhushan Jadhav in an alleged espionage case, saying "truth and justice" have prevailed. Through a tweet, Modi welcomed the verdict as "We welcome today`s verdict in the ICJ. Truth and justice have prevailed. Congratulations to the ICJ for a verdict based on extensive study of facts. I am sure Kulbhushan Jadhav will get justice. Our government will always work for the safety and welfare of every Indian." 

COMMERCIAL BREAK
SCROLL TO CONTINUE READING

The Prime Minister`s remarks came soon after the ICJ put on hold the death sentence of Jadhav, and directed Pakistan to grant consular access to Kulbhushan. It also held that Pakistan had "breached" the Vienna Convention in this regard by denying Jadhav his right.

India had approached the ICJ to stay the execution of Kulbhushan Jadhav, an Indian naval officer, who was sentenced to death by a Pakistani military court in April 2017 for alleged espionage. 

In November 2008, India and Pakistan inked a bilateral agreement on consular access to their prisoners in each others` countries.

India spent Re 1, Pakistan crores!

In the Kulbhushan Jadhav case, senior advocate Harish Salve charged Re 1 as his fee to represent India in the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in the Hague. On the other hand, Pakistan reportedly spent over Rs 20 crore on lawyers to prove that Jadhav was a spy.

Earlier on May 15, 2017, former External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj had revealed in a tweet that Salve was charging merely Re 1 to represent India in the Hague. Notably, Salve otherwise charges Rs 30 lakh a day.

Last year, the Pakistan government had in its budget document presented in the National Assembly said that it paid Rs 20 crore to UK-based barrister Khawar Qureshi, who is representing the country in the Hague. 

A Cambridge University law graduate, Qureshi is the youngest lawyer fighting a case in the ICJ.