There is no denying the fact that the Indian government is trying its best to bring Kulbhushan Jadhav back from Pakistan where he has been accused of spying and sentenced death penalty by a military court. In order to save Jadhav’s life, India went to International Court of Justice in The Hague, Netherlands, after 45 years and it has sent one of the best lawyers to present its side. Advocate Harish Salve who has also served as the Solicitor General to the country is representing India in ICJ and he has spoken for nearly 1.5 hours today to save Jadhav from death sentence.
However, you will be surprised to know how much 61 years old Salve is charging to represent India in ICJ. The amount was made public by the External Affairs Minister, Sushma Swaraj, when she replied to a tweet.
A user with the Twitter handle @goyalsanjeev wrote, “Any good India lawyer would have done the same and with much less expenses than #HarishSalve. Wait for the verdict!”
Any good India lawyer would have done the same and with much less expenses than #HarishSalve. Wait for the verdict!https://t.co/Gfw3sBufrL
— #Intolerant भारतीय (@goyalsanjeev) May 15, 2017
Sushma Swaraj was quick to reply, “Not fair. #HarishSalve has charged us Rs.1/- as his fee for this case.”
Not fair. #HarishSalve has charged us Rs.1/- as his fee for this case. https://t.co/Eyl3vQScrs
— Sushma Swaraj (@SushmaSwaraj) May 15, 2017
Harish Salve tells the International court, “The situation is grave, it is urgent, and hence we approached this court at such short notice,” as he adds that there are chances that Jadhav will be executed by Pakistan even before the verdict is given by the ICJ.
India told the court that 16 times, Pakistan rejected consular access to Jadhav who is not a spy, as he was doing business in Iran and was kidnapped from there. Salve said, “The basic rights of Jadhav were thrown to the winds,” as the lawyer was provided to him when the trial was very near to its end and the judgment had been given in a farcical manner.
On the other hand, Pakistan claimed that Jadhav was arrested from Baluchistan province where he was involved in anti-Pakistan activities and India was trying to create a drama by using ICJ as “political theatre.”
We respect Harish Salve for fighting the case for almost free of cost but at the moment, what matters the most for us is the safe comeback of Kulbhushan Jadhav from Pakistan. What do you say?