Pakistan asks India to appoint lawyer for Kulbhushan Jadhav

Pakistan has urged India to appoint a lawyer to represent Kulbhushan Jadhav, the Indian national who is on death row.

The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Thursday asked India to hire a legal representative for Kulbhushan Jadhav, to implement the verdict of the International Court of Justice, according to a local media report.

The court has given New Delhi time till April 13 to provide Jadhav with legal representation, reported Pakistan Today.

According to the news outlet, IHC Chief Justice Athar Minallah said that the decision of the International Court of Justice had expressed confidence in the Pakistani judicial system and left the matter of reviewing the death penalty to Pakistan.

The Attorney General of Pakistan, Khalid Javed Khan appraised the court of the progress made with contacts to India regarding Jadhav.

When asked the AGP stated that an act has been passed on the matter in December last year, according to which the law ministry can file a petition against a foreigner, reported Pakistan Today.

Jadhav, 51 is a retired naval officer on death row. Pakistan claims that Jadhav was arrested from Balochistan in 2016 on charges of espionage and terrorism. India has rejected Pakistan's allegations and said he was kidnapped from the Iranian port of Chabahar.

India approached ICJ in 2017 against the death sentence and denial of consular access to Jadhav.

( With inputs from ANI )