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The judges of the International Court of Justice before the verdict in The Hague, the Netherlands, this Wednesday, July 17, 2019. REUTERS / Piroschka van De Wouw

The International Court of Justice (ICJ) ordered Pakistan on Wednesday (July 17th) to "re-examine" the death sentence of an Indian for spying. This verdict was hailed as a victory by New Delhi. The decisions of the Court are binding, even if in fact the ICJ has no way of enforcing them. Back on this case that poisons relations between Islamabad and New Delhi.

Kulbhushan Sudhir Jadhav, the former 48-year-old Indian marine engineer, was sentenced to death by a Pakistani court martial in April 2017 for "espionage, sabotage and terrorism". He was arrested in March 2016 in the volatile Balochistan province of southwestern Pakistan.

According to Islamabad, the accused confessed and admitted working for Indian intelligence services. A version challenged by New Delhi, which ensures that his national was kidnapped in Iran where he was engaged in commercial activities after retiring from the Indian Navy.

India immediately called the trial before the court martial "masquerade" and seized the judges of the International Court of Justice. The latter therefore considered that Pakistan had violated the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, which gives countries the right to have consular access to their nationals arrested abroad.

Kulbhushan Sudhir Jadhav was denied access while in detention, and Pakistan has not arranged for him to be represented by a lawyer. New Delhi shouts victory and hopes to open a new trial in a civil court.