The year 2017 could go down as one of the worst for Indo-Pak bilateral ties. The two major attacks by Pakistan in 2016 followed by surgical strike and trading of heavy fire at borders, raised the fear of large-scale conflicts.
The Kulbhushan Jhadav case is a catalyst in deteriorating relations between the countries. Kulbhushan, a former Navy officer was arrested in March 2016 on charges of carrying espionage and terrorist activities in Balochistan. The military court of Pakistan had awarded him with death penalty in the first week of April. Due to Army Act 1952 of Pakistan, Kulbhushan doesn’t have the option the appeal before a civil court, he can only appeal to Military Appellate Tribunal. The Indian authorities outlined Jhadav as ‘son of India’, warning Pakistan of undesirable consequences if the death sentence was carried out. The International Court Of Justice at The Hague on 15th May 2017 has deferred its ruling on India’s petition to stop his execution. The fate of the accused spy remains blurred until the next judgement by the ICJ. Sushma Swaraj said, “India would go out of its way to rescue Jhadav.” The relations are further drained by recent beheading of two Indian Army personnel on the LOC. As a result, the Indian government has postponed the maritime security dialogue dealing with fishermen of both the countries languishing in the jails. For India and Pakistan the best course is to accept the realities by involving dialogues and peaceful strategies. The ever spiralling violence in Jammu and Kashmir, is allegedly aided and abetted by Pakistan, has kept the two country miles away from forging a peaceful relationship.
The year 2017 could go down as one of the worst for Indi-Pak bilateral ties. The two major attacks by Pakistan in 2016 followed by surgical strike and trading of heavy fire at borders, raised the fear of large scale conflicts.
The Kulbhushan Jhadav case is a catalyst in deteriorating relations between the countries. Kulbhushan, a former Navy officer was arrested in march 2016 on charges of carrying espionage and terrorist activities in Balochistan. The military court of Pakistan had awarded him with death penalty in the first week of April. Due to Army Act 1952 of Pakistan, Kulbhushan doesn’t have the option the appeal before a civil court, he can only appeal to Military Appellate Tribunal. The Indian authorities outlined Jhadav as ‘son of India’, warning Pakistan of undesirable consequences, if the death sentence was carried out. The International Court Of Justice at The Hague on 15th May, 2017 has deferred its ruling on India’s petition to stop his execution. The fate of the accused spy remains blurred until the next judgement by the ICJ. Sushma Swaraj said “India would go out of its way to rescue Jhadav”. The relations are further drained by recent beheading of two Indian Army personnel on the LOC. As a result, the Indian government has postponed the maritime security dialogue dealing with fishermen of both the countries languishing in the jails. For India and Pakistan the best course is to accept the realities by involving dialogues and peaceful strategies. The ever spiralling violence in Jammu and Kashmir, is allegedly aided and abetted by Pakistan, has kept the two country miles away from forging a peaceful relationship.