Residents of a small village in the western Maharashtra district of Satara on July 17 celebrated as the International Court of Justice (ICJ) stayed the death sentence awarded to local lad Kulbhushan Jadhav by a Pakistan court.
There were cheers of joy and sighs of relief as Judge Abdulqawi Ahmed Yusuf, President of the ICJ, read the court’s decision to stay Kulbhushan Jadhav’s death sentence till Pakistan reviews the trial.
People in Jadhav’s native village in Javli taluk of Satara district condemned Pakistan and demanded immediate release of the retired Indian Navy officer.
A villager said that Kulbhushan Jadhav has built a house in his farm at Javli and used to visit the village two-three times a year. “The Indian government should get him released at any cost. It is their responsibility. India should pressurise Pakistan to release Kulbhushan Jadhav,” the villager said.
Kulbhushan Jadhav is the son of Sudhir Jadhav, a retired Assistant Commissioner of Police in Mumbai. His uncle Subhash Jadhav, also a retired ACP, said, “We are happy that the judgement went in our favour and now await Kulbhushan’s return to India.”
At Parel in south Mumbai, where Kulbhushan Jadhav lived for some years, friends and relatives watched the ICJ proceedings live on a TV, with a prayer on their lips.
A friend of Kulbhushan Jadhav said they arranged for a TV set where they would sit together and watch the ICJ ruling. After the ruling, they released balloons and pigeons in the sky as a gesture of peace.
Kulbhushan Jadhav’s friends watched the telecast wearing ‘India with Kulbhushan’ T-shirts and also offered special prayers ahead of the ICJ verdict.
