Petition in Pakistan SC for 'early execution' of Kulbhushan Jadhav

A petition has been filed in Pakistan's Supreme Court seeking 'immediate execution' of alleged Indian spy Kulbhushan Jadhav if he failed to get his capital punishment overturned.

The petition was moved by former senate chairman Advocate Farooq Naek on behalf of Muzamil Ali on Saturday, seeking a declaration that the order from the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to stay the execution of Jadhav has no binding effect on Pakistan under domestic law.

Pakistan claimed that Jadhav was taken into custody in Balochistan in March 2016 while India has repeatedly maintained that Jadhav was on a business trip to Iran and Pakistan had captured him from there and planted a false case against him.

Jadhav, a former Indian Navy officer, was given the death sentence by a military court in Pakistan on April 10 for alleged "espionage and subversive activities".

The ICJ had on May 18 stayed the execution of 46-year-old Jadhav, who was sentenced to death last month by a Pakistan military court that convicted him of alleged spying and subversive activities.

Pakistan raised the confession statement of Jadhav as a base of its argument and accused India of using the ICJ for its political theatrics. India termed that the confession of Jadhav was forcibly taken by the military while in captivity and he was tried by a military court in Pakistan.

Amjad Shoaib, an ex-ISI official and a retired Lieutenant General of the Pakistan Army, has acknowledged India's claim that Kulbhushan Jadhav was captured from Iran.

-ANI