Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: The Parliamentary Committee on National Security has stressed that Pakistan should present the Kulbhushan Jadhav case at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) with full preparation at the next hearing.

National Assembly Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq said this while talking to reporters after attending a meeting of the committee. The speaker said that all members of the committee had discussed the case beyond their political affiliation. Judicial process of the case will be discussed again in the next meeting of the committee going to be held on May 30.

During the meeting, he said, the members had given their input and reviewed the situation critically. “No political discussion was held during the meeting of the parliamentary committee. It is an issue of national interest and everybody has concerns over it. They want Pakistan to win the case in the ICJ,” he said.

The International Court of Justice at the Hague had issued a stay against the death sentence awarded to Kulbhushan Jadhav. Jadhav was sentenced by a Pakistani military court on charges of spying and supporting terrorism.

Meanwhile, government remained unable to remove the reservations of the members of opposition over handling of the Jadhav case in the ICJ. Members of the committee belonging to the opposition benches expressed dissatisfaction over the government’s performance in the ICJ case.

Shaikh Rasheed of Awami Muslim League said that the attorney general of Pakistan had faced critical questions on the judicial process of the case.

“The government was not prepared to brief the members properly over the issue. The government has assured us that it will satisfy our questions at the next meeting of the committee,” he said.

MQM Pakistan head Dr Farooq Sittar was also not satisfied over the briefing by the government. While responding to questions after attending the meeting, he said that it was the most serious issue discussed during the meeting.

The attorney general of Pakistan had briefed the members of the committee on the performance of Pakistani lawyers in the Jadhav case. Aftab Sherpao, Shireen Mazari, Ghulam Ahmed Bilour, Sherry Rehman, Saeed Mandokhel, Mushahidullah Khan, Zahid Hamid, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs secretary, Tehmina Janjua and others participated in the meeting.