India has asked Pakistan to give unconditional access to Indian spy-terrorist Kulbhushan Jadhav, Indian news agency ANI reported on Thursday, quoting sources.
Earlier Pakistan had stated that the Indian spy-terrorist had refused to file a review plea. India said that he had been coerced into doing that.
India had last Thursday said it is assessing all legal options in the case related to Kulbushan Jadhav, who is on death row in Pakistan and assured that it is committed to protecting the life of Indian nationals.
Pakistan had earlier said that Jadhav, a former Indian navy officer, has refused to initiate review petition of his sentence and conviction.
"We had pointed out how Pakistan's claim that Kulbushan Jadhav has refused to initiate a review petition, is a continuation of the farce playing out for the last 4 years. We are assessing our legal options and we remain committed to protecting the life of our Indian nationals," Indian Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Anurag Srivastava had said during a media briefing.
India had also dismissed Pakistan's claims that Jadhav has refused to file an appeal in the Islamabad High Court (IHC) against his conviction and stated that the Indian national was coerced by Islamabad to forego his rights to seek implementation of the judgment of the International Court of Justice (ICJ).
Now, India sought unimpeded access to Jadhav to discuss his remedies under the ordinance that allowed the high court to review the sentence awarded by Pakistan's military court.
Jadhav was arrested from Balochistan by Pakistani security forces on March 3, 2016, after he entered the country from Iran. India has rejected Pakistan's allegations about Jadhav's involvement in spying and subversive activities and said he was kidnapped from the Iranian port of Chabahar where he was running a business.