Salve exposes Pak military courts at ICJ, says judges don't even need law degree

February 18, 2019 19:15

India on Monday tore through the "opaque proceedings" of Pakistani military courts which try civilians against the international norms, saying the judges, who tried Indian national Kulbhushan Jadhav, are not required to have judicial or legal training or even a law degree.

India's plea at the International Court of Justice came as the top UN court began a four-day public hearing in the case of Jadhav, 48, who was sentenced to death by a Pakistani military court on charges of espionage.

Ex-solicitor general Harish Salve, who represented India, said that a foreign detainee has the right to life, the right to a fair trial and an impartial judiciary.

"However, Pakistan has sentenced 161 civilians to death in their military courts in opaque proceedings in the last two years," Salve said.

International standards require that military courts like all courts must be independent, impartial and competent, and must respect minimum guarantees of fairness, he said.

"Pakistani military courts are not independent and the proceedings before them fall far short of national and international fair trial standards.

"Judges of military courts are military officers who are part of the executive branch of the government and do not enjoy independence from the military hierarchy," Salve said.

He claimed that the judges of the Pakistani military courts are not required to have judicial or legal training or even a law degree, and they do not enjoy any security of tenure which are prerequisites of judicial competence and independence.

-- PTI

« Back to LIVE

TOP STORIES

Saudi Smash TT: Manika shocks World No 2 Wang

Manika Batra shocked World No. 2 Wang Manyu of China to secure the biggest win of her singles career.

IPL PIX: SKY smashes century as MI ease past SRH

Suryakumar Yadav smashed an unbeaten century as Mumbai Indians eased past Sunrisers Hyderabad by seven wickets.

Probe an eyewash: HC acquits ex-BJP MP in RTI activist's murder case

Observing that the trial court conducted proceedings with a "predetermined notion of conviction", a division bench of Justices AS Supehia and Vimal K Vyas quashed the CBI court's order sentencing Solanki and the six others to life...

Relay star wants to set an example for Indian athletes

'if my body is giving me company why should I stop the sport? Some foreign athletes run till 35 or 37. So I wanted to set an example for other athletes that age does not matter,' says MR Poovamma, Arjuna Awardee and the senior-most...

Karnataka let Prajwal leave the country says Modi

Modi told Times Now that the responsibility to take action in the raging matter lay with the state government as it was a law and order issue, according to the transcript of the interview provided by the broadcaster.