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Kulbhushan Jadhav case: Pakistan confirms wife and mother have received visas to visit him

Jadhav was arrested in March on charges of espionage

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Pakistan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs has approved the visa applications of the mother and wife of Naval Commander Kulbhushan Jadhav, who is on a death row in that country on charges of espionage.

The spokesperson for Pakistan's foreign ministry shared the news on his Twitter handle on Saturday evening.

Earlier, Pakistan's foreign office sent a letter to the Ministry of External Affairs suggesting that Jadhav's family can meet him on Christmas.

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj confirmed that Pakistan will grant visa to both the mother and the wife of Jadhav. On November 10, Pakistan had agreed to allow Jadhav's wife to meet him. India has been pressing Pakistan to grant a visa to his mother Avantika as well, on humanitarian grounds.

Describing it as a positive development, MEA spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said Pakistan has also permitted an Indian diplomat to accompany Jadhav's wife and mother during their trip. The diplomat will be present during their meeting in the jail. When queried whether allowing Indian diplomat to accompany Jadhav's relatives in jail meant granting consular access, Kumar said it was too early to predict the nature of the access.

Jadhav had filed an appeal with Pakistani Army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa to seek clemency, which is still pending. In October, the Pakistan Army had said it was close to a decision on Jadhav's mercy petition.

According to Pakistan, its security forces arrested Jadhav from the restive Balochistan province on March 3, last year, after he reportedly entered the area from Iran. He was charged for espionage and sentenced to death. India, however, maintains that Jadhav was kidnapped from Iran, where he planned to start a business after retiring from the Indian Navy.

After India approached ICJ, a 10-member bench on May 18 restrained Pakistan from executing Jadhav till the adjudication of the case. The ICJ had asked Pakistan to submit its response by December 13, before the court could start further proceedings. Pakistan is now expected to inform the ICJ that since it has agreed to provide consular access to the prisoner, India's plea at the world court be declared infructuous.

However, Pakistan on Wednesday rejected India's plea for consular access to Kulbhushan Jadhav at the ICJ, claiming that New Delhi wants the access to get the information gathered by its 'spy'.

Media reports from Pakistan suggest that Pakistan in its reply has alleged Jadhav is not an ordinary person and had entered the country with the intent of spying and carrying out sabotage activities. The reply, which was submitted by the Foreign Office's Director (India), Fariha Bugti, also claimed that Jadhav case does not fall under the purview of the Vienna Convention.

The counter-memorial said the consular access under the Vienna Convention was reserved only for legitimate visitors and not for spies.

Reports said the reply also encompasses the charge-sheet filed against Jadhav, which also includes his confession.

Pakistan has stated that "the Indians have not denied that Jadhav was travelling on a passport with an assumed Muslim name."

"Lack of explanation on how a serving naval commander was operating under secondment to Indian spy agency Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) and also was travelling under an assumed name leads to only one conclusion that India wanted consular access to the information he had gathered," said the counter memorial.

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