UN tribunal order on marines affirms authority of SC: Govt

The Congress staged a walkout as the party was not allowed to seek clarifications over Finance Minister Arun Jaitley’s statement on behalf of External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj. Jaitley said the tribunal had confirmed Italy’s obligation to return Sergeant Girone to India in case India’s jurisdiction over him was established. The tribunal has also left it to the Supreme Court to fix precise conditions for his bail.

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“We see the tribunal’s order not just as a recognition of India’s consistent positions and key arguments but also as an affirmation of the authority of the Supreme Court of India,” he said.

The minister pointed out that the issue of jurisdiction, which was at the heart of the case, was yet to be even argued before the tribunal and the limited relief given on humanitarian considerations had been made contingent on the clear-cut undertakings given by Italy that Girone will return to India in case its jurisdiction was established.

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He said, “The tribunal noted that while Italy had earlier made a far-reaching request that, if granted, would have removed Sergeant Girone entirely from the reach of India’s legal system, this time Italy was only requesting India to relax the bail conditions to enable him to return to Italy. In doing so, Italy was prepared to accept that he remained under the jurisdiction of the courts in India. In essence, they proposed to change the physical location of Sergeant Girone’s bail without prejudice to the authority of India’s courts.”