India says it will be 'premeditated murder' if the sentence against Kulbhushan Jadhav is carried out 'without observing basic norms of law and justice; It comes after a secret trial in Pakistan
A file picture of Pakistani journalists watching a video showing Indian national Kulbhushan Jadhav, arrested on suspicion of spying, during a press conference in Islamabad. Pic/AFP
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Islamabad/New Delhi: Pakistan's army chief yesterday approved the execution of Indian national Kulbhushan Jadhav after a military court sentenced him to death for "espionage and sabotage activities" in a "farce" trial, evoking a sharp reaction from India which described the move as "premeditated murder".
The death sentence to Jadhav, 46, was confirmed by army chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa after the Field General Court Martial (FGCM) found him guilty of "all the charges", said the military's media wing Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR).
Proceedings 'farcical'
Reacting strongly, Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar in New Delhi summoned Pakistan High Commissioner to India Abdul Basit and gave a demarche, which said the proceedings that have led to the sentence against Jadhav are "farcical in the absence of any credible evidence" against him. "If this sentence against an Indian citizen, awarded without observing basic norms of law and justice, is carried out, the Government and people of India will regard it as a case of premeditated murder," the foreign secretary said in the demarche. He said Jadhav was kidnapped last year from Iran and his subsequent presence in Pakistan has never been "explained credibly".
Pakistan claims its security forces had arrested Jadhav from Balochistan province on March 3 last year after he reportedly entered from Iran. It also claimed that he was "a serving officer in the Indian Navy." The Pakistan Army had also released a "confessional video" of Jadhav. India had acknowledged that Jadhav had served with the navy but denied that he has any connection with the government.
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