Attorney General of Pakistan Anwar Mansoor Khan (L) and his delegation sit at the ICJ.
Pakistan was snubbed on Tuesday at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) when it sought for a replacement of an ad-hoc Pakistani judge during the hearing of the case related to Indian national Kulbhushan Jadhav who has been sentenced to death by a military court in Pakistan.
Pakistan's Attorney General Anwar Mansoor Khan said his country's ad-hoc judge to the ICJ, Tassaduq Hussain Jillani, suffered a cardiac arrest on Monday during the first day of hearings of the case and requested that his replacement be sworn-in before he could make his argument.
However, the ICJ President, Abdulqawi Ahmed Yusuf, overlooked the plea and told the Pakistani advocate, "I would like to ask you to read your statement if your statement is ready. We are ready to hear you and hear your side."
Mr Khan then went on to make his argument, a day after the Indian side told the world court that Mr Jadhav had been sentenced to death by a military court during a "farcical" hearing and that he should be released forthwith.
In his representation, the Pakistani advocate said the Indian claim to relief must be dismissed.
Mr Jadhav, 48, was sentenced to death by a Pakistani military court on charges of alleged "espionage" on April 11, 2017, following which India moved the ICJ, challenging the verdict.
Subsequently, on May 18, 2017, a 10-member bench of ICJ restrained Pakistan from executing Mr Jadhav till the case was resolved.
During the hearing yesterday, India's advocate Harish Salve raised questions over how a military court could hold a trial for a civilian without giving him a due and transparent right to defend.
Mr Khan, in his counter, said, "Local laws are within the domain of parliament and the independent courts of Pakistan. Similarly, the creation of military courts was through this parliamentary process."
India has maintained that Mr Jadhav, a former Naval officer-turned-businessman, was innocent and he had been kidnapped by Pakistani intelligence agencies from Iran.