The Congress today said it stood with the government on Kulbhushan Jadhav's sentencing by Pakistan and there can be no politics on it as the judicial process adopted by the neighbouring country lacks credibility.
"We all are on the same page as the judicial process that Pakistan has adopted for sentencing Mr Jadhav lacks any credibility, lacks any legitimacy. This is something on which there can be no political brownie point-scoring," Congress spokesperson Jairam Ramesh said.
He said the fact that India has demanded consular access 14 times and it has been rejected as many times indicated that the procedure adopted by Pakistan lacked credibility and legitimacy.
"It has been said in the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha that in the matter of Kulbhushan Jadhav there can be no politics. We believe that the whole judicial proceedings under which he has been sentenced in Pakistan do not inspire any confidence, do not have any credibility. Consular access has been denied 14 times," he said.
The Congress leader said India stood together on the issue.
A Pakistani military tribunal had on April 10 sentenced Jadhav, a former Indian naval officer, to death in a secret trial for alleged involvement in "espionage and sabotage activities" in restive Balochistan and Karachi.
According to the Vienna Convention, the state which detains a national of another country must allow consular officers of the other country to access the detainee.
India had yesterday said it would appeal against the death sentence and demanded from Pakistan a certified copy of the charge-sheet as well as the army court order in the case, besides seeking consular access to the retired Indian navy officer.
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