Kulbhushan Jadhav's Mercy Petition in Final Stage, Pak Army Says 'Good News' Soon

New Delhi: The mercy petition of Indian national Kulbhushan Jadhav, a retired Indian navy officer sentenced to death by a Pakistan military court allegedly for espionage and subversive activities, is in its "final stages" and a "good news" is likely to come "very soon," a senior Pakistani army officer told news reporters in the country on Thursday.

Though he didn't spell it out, the "good news" for Pakistan is likely to be the army chief turning down Jadhav's mercy petition, clearing way for his execution.

Talking to reporters in Rawalpindi, the Director General of Inter Services Public Relation (ISPR), Major General Asif Ghafoor on Thursday said that a "good news" on the Kulbhushan Jadhav case could be expected anytime soon.

How will, if at all the Chief of Pakistan Army General Qamar Javed Bajwa turns down the mercy appeal of the Indian national, such an execution order be viewed in context of the ongoing arguments at International Court of Justice remains to be seen.

In a hearing of the case on May 18, a 10-member bench of the ICJ restrained Pakistan from executing Jadhav. The top UN court had ruled that Pakistan "shall take all measures at its disposal to ensure Jadhav is not executed pending final decision."

On September 27, Pakistan's Foreign Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif claimed that a proposal was made to swap Indian national Kulbhushan Jadhav for a jailed terrorist in Afghanistan, who was responsible for the horrific 2014 Peshawar school attack.

India vehemently denied the claim.

"The terrorist who killed children in APS (Army Public School) in Peshawar is in Afghan custody. The National Security Advisor (NSA) told me that we can exchange that terrorist with the terrorist you have, which is Kulbhushan Jadhav," Khawaja Muhammad Asif told a New York audience on Wednesday.

This was followed immediately by a rebuttal from Afghan National Security Adviser, Mohammad Haneef Atmar, who is a statement, said there was no mention or reference of India or an Indian citizen during his meeting with the Pakistani foreign minister on September 21 in New York.

Jadhav, a 46-year-old retired Indian Navy officer, was in April sentenced to death by Pakistan's Field General Court Martial on charges of his alleged "involvement in espionage and sabotage activities" against Pakistan.