Jadhav death sentence: V K Singh promises necessary action

Jadhav, a resident of Mumbai, was allegedly arrested by Pakistani authorities on March 3, 2016, from Balochistan‘s Mashkel area on the suspicion of espionage and sabotage activities against Pakistan. He was sentenced to death by a Field General Court Martial (FGCM) under section 59 of the Pakistan Army Act (PAA) 1952 and Section 3 of the Official Secrets Act of 1923, a statement by Inter-services Public Relations (ISPR), Pakistan military’s media wing, had said.

In response, India had summoned the Pakistani High Commissioner Abdul Basit and handed him a demarche that said that Jadhav had been sentenced without any credible evidence against him. “If this sentence against an Indian citizen, awarded without observing basic norms of law and justice, is carried out, the Government and people of India will regard it as a case of premeditated murder,” the demarche had stated.

The Minister of State reiterated the statement and said that there was no room for doubt over what India thinks in this regard. “As far as Kulbhushan Jadhav is concerned, the statement is very clear. If any action is taken against him, we will consider it as premeditated murder. There can’t be stronger words said on the subject,” he said.

The minister, however, refused to comment on the video that surfaced on social media that allegedly showed CRPF soldiers being physically assaulted by locals in Kashmir. “I have not seen the video. There are many videos going around and I don’t know about their veracity. Who took that video and who posted it, I don’t know,” he said.
Ambassador of Congo to India Rosette Mossi Nyamale was also present at the seminar. She spoke about the deepening economic and trade ties between the two countries and welcomed private investors to open business in Congo in various sectors. Kasongo Musenga, second counselor of economic affairs at the Congo embassy, also gave a presentation on the steps taken by the government in Congo to incentivise foreign investment and increase the ease of doing business.