Kulbhushan Jadhav's mercy petition still pending with Pakistan army chief

New Delhi/Islamabad: The mercy petition of Kulbhushan Jadhav, sentenced to death on espionage charges, is still pending with the Pakistan army chief for adjudication, the military said on Monday.

India had moved the Hague-based International Court of Justice (ICJ) in May last year after Kulbhushan Jadhav, 47, was sentenced to death by a Pakistani military court on charges of espionage and terrorism.

A 10-member bench of the ICJ on May 18 had restrained Pakistan from executing Jadhav till adjudication of the case.

Pakistan Army spokesman said today that his mercy petition was still pending with Chief of Army Staff Qamar Jawad Bajwa.

"The mercy petition of Kulbhushan Jadhav is with the Army Chief. It is his prerogative to decide, whenever he wishes to. But whenever the decision is taken, we will inform ," said Major General Asif Ghafoor, the Director General of Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) - the media wing of the army.

Pakistan claims that its security forces arrested Jadhav from Balochistan province on March 3, 2016 after he reportedly entered from Iran.

However, India maintains that he was kidnapped from Iran where he had business interests after retiring from the Navy. His sentencing had evoked a sharp reaction in India.