Kiren Rijiju says stay on Kulbhushan Jadhav's hanging big achievement for India

Jadhav (46), a retired Indian Navy officer, has been sentenced to death by a Pakistani military court on charges of "spying".

Mumbai, May 10: Union minister Kiren Rijiju on Wednesday described the International Court of Justice's stay on the execution of Indian national Kulbhushan Jadhav, sentenced to death by a Pakistani military court, as "a major achievement" for the government.

Jadhav (46), a retired Indian Navy officer, has been sentenced to death by a Pakistani military court on charges of "spying".

"The stay on Indian national Kulbhushan Jadhav's hanging in Pakistan is a major achievement for the Government of India," the Union Minister of State for Home told reporters on the sidelines of an event here.

When asked about the Centre's future steps in Jadhav's case, Rijiju said, "It is being handled by the ministry of external affairs and not the home ministry." The ICJ, based in The Hague in the Netherlands, stayed the hanging of Jadhav.

The order of the court came a day after India approached it against the death sentence handed down to Jadhav by Pakistan's Field General Court Martial last month.

PTI