SC declines to take up plea by Indian held in Prague for ‘plot’ to kill Pannun

SC declines to take up plea by Indian held in Prague for ‘plot’ to kill Pannun

Subject: IR

Section: International Organisation

Context:

• The Supreme Court refused to intervene in a plea by an Indian national for assistance from the Union government to defend his rights in a foreign court after being detained in Prague for alleged involvement in a conspiracy to murder the U.S. ­based Khalistani activist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun.

Supreme Courts Judgement:

• Judiciary held that Supreme Court could not do anything in a sensitive matter involving public international law, and it was up to the Government of India to decide how to deal with the issue.

About Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, 1963:

• The Vienna Convention on Consular Relations is an international treaty that defines a framework for consular relations between sovereign states.
• It codifies many consular practices that originated from state custom and various bilateral agreements between states.
• The Convention was adopted on 24 April 1963 following the United Nations Conference on Consular Relations in Vienna, Austria.
• The treaty consists of 79 articles, with the preamble emphasizing the continued application of customary international law to matters not addressed in the Convention.

Some key provisions of the convention:

• Article 5 outlines thirteen functions of a consul, including protecting the interests of the sending State and its nationals, assisting nationals, and promoting relations between the sending and receiving States.
• Article 23 allows the host nation to declare a consular staff member persona non grata at any time, with the sending state required to recall the individual promptly, or they may lose consular immunity.
• Article 31 establishes the inviolability of consular premises, prohibiting the host nation from entering or damaging the premises.
• Article 35 safeguards freedom of communication between the consul and their home country, ensuring that consular bags are not opened or detained, and consular couriers are not detained.
• Article 36 addresses communication between consular officers and nationals of the sending state, granting consular officers the right to communicate with and visit nationals who are arrested or detained.
• Article 37 mandates prompt notification to consular officers if a sending state’s national dies, has a guardian appointed, or if a vessel or aircraft of the sending state is involved in an incident in the receiving state.
• Article 40 requires the receiving state to treat consular officers with respect and prevent any attack on their person, freedom, or dignity.
• Articles 58-68 cover honorary consular officers, detailing their powers and functions.