Pakistan says consular access to Jadhav not given

Islamabad, Dec 25 (IANS) The Pakistan Foreign Office on Monday clarified that India has not been given consular access to alleged Indian spy Kulbhushan Jadhav, ahead of his meeting with his wife and mother here.

Foreign Office spokesperson Muhammad Faisal said the presence of an Indian diplomat during the scheduled meeting between Jadhav and his family does not mean India has been given consular access to Jadhav, on death row in Pakistan.

Foreign Minister Khawaja Asif earlier had said that India had been given consular access to the Jadhav, describing it as a "concession".

After their arrival from Dubai earlier in the day, Jadhav's mother Avanti and wife reached the Foreign Office here to meet him. They were accompanied by Indian Deputy High Commissioner J.P. Singh, and will be allowed to meet him for 30 minutes.

They are slated to leave the country later in the day. The roads leading from and to the Foreign Office building have been closed to traffic.

A Mumbai-based former naval officer-turned-businessman, Jadhav was arrested on March 3, 2016, and was sentenced to death by a Pakistani military court on charges of espionage and terrorism.

After persistent demands by New Delhi, the Pakistan government finally permitted the meeting terming it as "purely on humanitarian grounds".

India has maintained Jadhav's innocence and said he was kidnapped from Iran where he had gone for handling his businesses after superannuation from the Indian Navy.

Despite the death verdict, Pakistan last week reiterated that he was not under a threat of an immediate execution as his mercy petitions were still pending.