World Court Election Was Litmus Test For Indian Diplomacy: Syed Akbaruddin

India shattered a 70-year strong glass ceiling at the United Nations today with the re-election of its judge Dalveer Bhandari, at the International Court of Justice at Hague, in a move being touted as its biggest ever diplomatic win. Moments after the breakthrough, NDTV's Namrata Brar spoke with India's Permanent Representative to the United Nations in New York, where Ambassador Syed Akbaruddin told NDTV that the win was more than litmus test for an individual - it was a litmus test for Indian diplomacy and a clear reflection of the "winds of change" at the world's most powerful regulatory body. It was the result of an unprecedented diplomatic effort from India's Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj with even PM Narendra Modi personally reaching out to world leaders. NDTV has learnt from sources that "India stared UK down" at a crucial meeting with the Presidents of the General Assembly and Security Council just hours before the big vote, where much to UK's surprise, India unveiled its secret weapon. UK had long believed that its support from nine security council members would extend to their support for invoking an arcane, century-old resolution mechanism where three members each from the General Assembly and Security Council are appointed to decide the fate of a deadlock. But India's diplomatic breakthrough convinced some of the nine members to back India in the crucial decision, forcing the colonial power to withdraw as a face saving gesture amidst impending embarrassment. For the first time in 71 years, there is no British judge on the world court.