International Court to decide if it can judge Pak, India dispute

"The hearing will be dedicated exclusively to the issueof the court’s jurisdiction to deal with the dispute," an ICJ spokesman said.

He indicated the court is expected to take about three tofour month’s time to deliver judgement at a public sitting after the conclusion of oral proceedings this week.

According to ICJ procedures, the judgement is final andwithout appeal and should one of the states involved fail to comply with it, the other party may have recourse to the UN Security Council.

India has lined legal luminaries led by Attorney GeneralSoli Sorabjee to present its case in the court.

ICJ-AIRCRAFT TWO

Prabhakar Menon will be the agent in the case by virtueof his being India’s Ambassador to The Netherlands.

Sorabjee, the Chief counsel and advocate, will beassisted among others by Dr P S Rao, Joint Secretary (Laws and Treaties) in the External Affairs Ministry, Dr B S Murthy, former Dean of Law, Andhra and Osmania Universities, B Sen, Senior Advocate in Supreme Court and Dr V S Mani, Professor of International Space Law in the Jawaharlal Nehru University.

Vivek Katju, Joint Secretary (Iran, Pakistan andAfghanistan) in the External Affairs Ministry is also part of the Indian delegation.

The Indian team will also have the benefit of the legaladvice from Ian Brownlie, Member of the International Law Commission and Member of the English Bar; Alain Pellet, Professor at the Institute of Political Studies, Paris and Marie Dumee, Assistant Lecturer at the Paris University.

The Court had wished to hold hearings in March, but, atthe pressing request of the parties, it has "exceptionally" agreed to open them later.

Pakistan and India had filed memorials andcounter-memorials respectively by the end of February after the former instituted proceedings before the ICJ against the latter in respect of a dispute concerning the "destruction" on August 10, 1999 of a Pakistani "Atlantique" naval aircraft near the Rann of Kutch area. All 16 persons on board were killed.

ICJ-AIRCRAFT 3 LAST

The ICJ spokesman said the merits of the case would bedeliberated by the ICJ only after it is established that the court has the jurisdiction to deal with the dispute. The proceedings were initiated on September 21 last.

Pakistan has requested the court to judge and declarethat the acts of India constitute "breaches" of various obligations for which "India bears exclusive legal responsibilty" and that India is under an obligation to make "reparations" to Pakistan for the loss of the aircraft and as compensation to the heirs of those killed, the spokesman said.

Justice B P Jeevan Reddy and Syed Sharifuddin Pirzadahave been chosen as ad-hoc judges on behalf of India and Pakistan since the ICJ did not have any judge of the nationality of the parties in the dispute on its bench.

It is for the second time that India has been taken tothe ICJ by Pakistan with the last case relating to Pakistani Prisoners of War after the 1971 Indo-Pak war. The case was mutually settled without any ICJ judgement.