Jadhav's wife was asked to remove her 'bindi', 'mangal sutra'; mother was not allowed to speak in their mother tongue during the meeting, alleges Ministry.
A day after the meeting of former naval officer Kulbhushan Jadhav with his mother and wife in Islamabad, India sharply criticised Pakistan for stage-managing what it called an exercise that “lacked credibility” and held in an “atmosphere of coercion.”
“We note with regret that the Pakistani side conducted the meeting in a manner which violated the letter and spirit of our understandings,” said Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Raveesh Kumar, after Mr. Jadhav’s family held a series of meetings with External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and other government officials.
Listing all the government’s reasons for its unhappiness with the conduct of the meeting, Mr. Kumar said the women had been intimidated, separated from Indian officials, harassed by the Pakistani media and even made to change attire, remove their necklace (mangal sutra), bangles and shoes “under the guise of security precautions.”
‘Mischievous intent’
Mr. Kumar was particularly critical of the fact that Pakistani officials had refused to return the shoes worn by Mrs. Jadhav and warned against any “mischievous intent” in this regard.
On Monday, Pakistan's government facilitated the meeting between Mr. Jadhav and his mother Avantika and wife Chetana at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Islamabad, the first such meeting since the announcement of Mr. Jadhav's arrest in March 2016 over alleged charges of terrorism. Since then, he has been convicted in a military court and sentenced to death, and his appeal for clemency is now under process.
India had officially requested the family meeting several times. Although the Indian Deputy High Commissioner (DHC) J.P. Singh was present for the interaction at the MFA, both Pakistan and India made it clear this did not constitute “consular access” for which a case is being fought at the International Court of Justice at The Hague.
According to the MEA, Mr. Jadhav's mother was also “prevented” from speaking in her mother tongue, Marathi, with her son and interrupted repeatedly, while they were separated by a glass partition throughout the meeting. The government also said it was worried about Mr. Jadhav’s medical condition.
“From the feedback we have received of the meeting, it appears that Shri Jadhav was under considerable stress and speaking in an atmosphere of coercion,” the MEA spokesperson added.
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