Opposition lambastes govt over Jadhav ordinance

By News Desk

ISLAMABAD: The opposition parties – the PML-N and the PPP – have strongly criticised the government for, what they called, an attempt to offer Indian spy Kulbhushan Jadhav a relief through an ordinance which allows the RAW spy to appeal his conviction.

In a fiery speech in the National Assembly on Thursday, Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari excoriated Prime Minister Imran Khan for, what he said, an attempt to give the Indian spy an “NRO” with the promulgation of the ordinance. Bilawal claimed no dictator or leader in the history of Pakistan had given as many NROs as Prime Minister Khan. Bilawal alleged that the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government also gave an NRO to Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) terrorist Ehsanullah Ehsan. “They have given an NRO to Ehsanullah Ehsan, they have released him,” he claimed.

The PPP leader said when the news of Ehsan’s release surfaced, he had submitted a question in the House asking about the incident, however thus far, he did not receive an answer to his query. “The answer for (the sake of martyred) APS students needs to be given,” he said.

Bilawal also criticised the Prime Minister for not speaking out against terrorists in his speeches. The lawmaker said PTI minister Murad Saeed defended the Indian spy, vowing the party will not accept the government’s ordinance regarding Jadhav’s appeal.

The PPP chairman said as per the law, if the National Assembly and Senate were in session, and if there was any ordinance, it has to be laid before the House as soon as possible. He alleged the House was not taken into confidence on the issue, and stressed that the Indian spy should not be given any relief. Earlier in the session, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz Khawaja Asif objected to the tabling of International Court of Justice (Review and Re-consideration) Ordinance, 2020 (No. VI of 2020) and said why was the government now facilitating Jadhav.

He said a serving Indian navy employee was caught in Pakistan for spying, adding a person who admitted to the killing of innocent people should not be given any relief. He said the Indian army was killing innocent people in Kashmir. “Legislation to facilitate an Indian spy is not acceptable,” he added.

Responding to Asif, Minister for Human Rights Shireen Mazari said despite objections of the PTI and the PPP, the PML-N government had accepted the jurisdiction of the ICJ in Jadhav’s case and now it was bound to implement the ICJ ruling.

Mazari said: “There was no reason to accept the jurisdiction of ICJ in the case of Kulbhushan Jadhav by the government of PML-N, and representatives from PPP and PTI during a meeting at that time had objected to it.”

She was of the view that when one country did not accept the jurisdiction, as per the law, the ICJ could not hear the case. She also alleged that at that time, the government had nominated a lower grade employee to defend the case. “We also objected to hiring of lawyers for the case,” she added.

The minister said it was the stance of her party and the PPP that the PML-N government had made a “big mistake” by accepting the jurisdiction of the ICJ. “We are stuck in ICJ due to wrong decision of the PML-N government and we should have not fought the case there,” she added.

She asked the PML-N to accept the mistake. She said in the parliamentary committee at that time, PTI and PPP made it clear that jurisdiction of the ICJ should not be accepted. She said now the government had to implement the ICJ decision as it had given its judgment in the case.