ISLAMABAD:  Pakistan seems to be filing a counter rejoinder on or before July 17 in the International Court of Justice or ICJ on the Kulbhushan Jadhav case. The Pakistani military court in April last year had sentenced to death for the Indian national over the charges of espionage and terrorism, a media report said today.

The rejoinder from Pakistan will be in response to a fresh set of pleadings filed by India in the International Court of Justice on April 17.

The attorney general from Pakistan’s office, which is in charge of the case, shall receive a copy of the Indian rejoinder within a day or two, Pakistan-based daily Dawn reported.

Khawar Qureshi pleaded Pakistan’s case for the initial stage and is expected to plead the case, the report said.

India had moved the International Court of Justice, based in Hague, in May last after Mr Jadhav, 47, was sentenced to death by a Pakistani military court in Islamabad over the charge of espionage and terrorism. The International Court of Justice with a 10-member bench on May 18 had ordered restrain for Pakistan from executing Indian National Mr Jadhav till adjudication of the case.

India accused Pakistan, in its written pleadings, that the country had violated the Vienna Convention by not availing consular access to Mr Jadhav by giving the argument that the convention did not say anything about such access would not be available to an individual arrested on espionage charges.

Pakistan responded by its counter memorial and told that the International Court of Justice that the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations 1963 can be applied only to legitimate visitors and cannot be applied to clandestine operations.

To this, India maintained that the trail of Mr Jadhav being conducted by a military court in Pakistan was “farcical”.

Pakistan has raised its claim that all its security forces have arrested Mr Jadhav from the restive Balochistan province on March 3, 2016 after he was reported to have entered from Iranian border.

As per the Indian claim, Mr. Jadhav was kidnapped from Iran where he was conducting his business interests after his retirement from the Indian Navy. His sentencing had evoked a sharp reaction from Indian side.

The International Court of Justice was approached by India for “egregious” violation of the provisions of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, 1963, by Pakistan in Mr Jadhav’s case.

Pakistan has repeatedly denied India consular access to Mr Jadhav on the grounds that it was not at all applicable in such cases related to “spies”.

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