Jadhav case: Pak didn’t inform of process to pick judge, says MEA

New Delhi: The external affairs ministry on Saturday said it had not received any communication from Pakistan about the launch of a consultation process to nominate an adhoc judge for the Kulbhushan Jadhav case at the International Court of Justice (ICJ). 

“We have seen reports in the media about it. We have not been informed officially about this process by relevant authorities,” MEA spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said.

According to a Pakistani media report, Islamabad has begun consultations for the nomination of an adhoc judge for the Jadhav case and that an ex-attorney general and a former Jordanian Premier have emerged as the top contenders.

India earlier moved the Hague-based ICJ against the death penalty handed down to Jadhav by a Pakistani military court. The ICJ on May 18 restrained Pakistan from executing the death sentence.

During the tenure of ousted Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, former Supreme Court judge Khalilur Rehman Ramday was approached, but he declined the offer, the Express Tribune report said. Sources were quoted as saying that the attorney-general for Pakistan’s office recommended names of senior lawyer Makhdoom Ali Khan and former Jordanian Prime Minister Awn Shawkat Al-Khasawneh to the Prime Minister’s office.