Kulbhushan Jadhav, who was sentenced to death by Pakistan military court for being a spy, had reportedly approached Research and Analysis Wing (R&AW) a number of times but his offers were turned down by the agency. According to The Indian Express report, between 2010 and 2012, Jadhav repeatedly had wanted to offer his service as a freelance intelligence operative but the organisation rejected the offer citing it will be ‘too much of a risk’.

In 2010, he had given proposal to R&AW, that his dhow, the Kaminda, can be used as a tool to to gather intelligence on Pakistan’s port project at Gwadar. But “R&AW had little interest in Jadhav’s intelligence-gathering proposals,” the report said. However, Anand Arni, the long-serving head of R&AW’s Pakistan Desk, who had retired in 2012. “I will only repeat what I said on Monday which is that Jadhav was not an asset of the agency. You are free to believe or disbelieve me,” the report said.

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In a videotape released by Pakistan’s military last year, Jadhav says he was recruited by R&AW in 2013, 10 years after setting up his base in Chabahar. However, there is no officer, past or present, bearing the name he cites as his handler — Joint Secretary Anil Kumar Gupta. In the videotape, Jadhav also claims he had contact with National Security Advisor Ajit Kumar Doval, who served as Director of the Intelligence Bureau in 2004-2005, before taking up his current assignment in 2014. There is no evidence, though of such contact, and intelligence insiders said it was profoundly unlikely an intelligence service’s asset would be granted an audience with the NSA.

Top US experts have expressed concern over Pakistan’s decision to give death penalty to Indian national Kulbhushan Jadhav as they warned that Islamabad wants to send a “strong message” to India against isolating it on the world stage.

Jadhav, 46, was awarded the death sentence by military Field General Court Martial under the army act for his alleged involvement in terrorism and espionage. The death sentence was confirmed by army chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa.

“Apart from the gross irregularities in the Jadhav situation, such as the lack of consular access and the secrecy surrounding the surprise court-martial, what struck me the most is the contrast between the speed of Mr Jadhav’s trial set against the endless postponements for that of the Mumbai attackers,” Alyssa Ayres, a former senior State Department official in its South and Central Asia Bureau said.

Stating that Kulbhushan Jadhav had the right to move the army’s court of appeal against his conviction within 60 days, Pakistan Defence Minister Khawaja Mohammad Asif has ruled out immediate execution of the Indian national convicted on charges of being a spy.

Speaking in the Senate, Asif claimed that Jadhav had the right to move the army’s court of appeal against his conviction within 60 days, followed by submission of mercy pleas to the army chief and the president, reports the Dawn.

However, a perusal of the Army Act, 1952 showed that under Section 131 of the act, an appeal could be moved within 40 days, and not 60 days.

Rejecting India’s stand that Jadhav’s execution would be “pre-meditated murder”, the Defence Minister asserted that due process of the law had been followed in the case.

(With agency inputs)