Diplomatic win: India's Bhandari re-elected to ICJ

JAMMU: In a significant diplomatic success, India's Dalveer Bhandari on Tuesday was re-elected to the International Court of Justice with more than two-thirds of the UN members backing him, forcing Britain to withdraw its candidate amidst high drama in the hard-fought race to the world court.
In what was described by India as one of its "biggest diplomatic victories" in the multilateral arena, Bhandari received 183 of the 193 votes in the General Assembly and secured all 15 votes in the Security Council to fill the final vacancy on the Hague-based International Court of Justice after separate but simultaneous elections were held at the UN headquarters here.
Bhandari, 70, was declared re-elected for a fresh nine- year term at the ICJ after Britain withdrew its candidate Christopher Greenwood from the race about an hour before the scheduled voting.
The UK government later in the day said the withdrawal of its candidate from the race for the last seat of the world court was part of its foreign policy objective to support India in the United Nations.
Addressing Members of Parliament in the House of Commons, UK foreign secretary Boris Johnson dismissed the idea that the defeat of the British candidate, Christopher Greenwood, was a "failure of British democracy".
"I congratulate the Indian judge on his election. It is a fine thing that another common law judge has joined the International Court of Justice," he said.
When asked what it symbolises for British diplomacy, he added: "It has been the long-standing objective of UK foreign policy to support India in the United Nations".
According to observers, Bhandari's victory has sent a strong message to the leading powers about the winds of change in the world and underscored the point that India is now a force to reckon with.
The ICJ has a bench of 15 judges, five of whom are elected every three years for a nine-year term. To be elected, the candidate needed majority in both the chambers.
Established in 1945, the role of the ICJ is to settle, in accordance with international law, legal disputes submitted to it by states and to give advisory opinions on legal questions.
Soon after the election results were announced, India's Permanent Representative to the UN Syed Akbaruddin was congratulated by representatives of other countries on the floor of the General Assembly.
"Vande Matram - India wins election to the International Court of Justice. JaiHind," tweeted External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj.
In the previous 11 rounds of voting, Bhandari had consistently polled nearly two-thirds of the members of the General Assembly.
With Bhandari's election, Britain will not have a judge on the world court's 15-member panel for the first time.
Also for the first time in 70 years, a permanent member of the Security Council lost to a non-permanent member for a seat in the ICJ.
The British move to block voting in the Security Council and go for the joint consultation mechanism, which was last used some 96 years ago, also fell flat yesterday.
In the last 10 days, it is learnt that India mounted an unprecedented diplomatic campaign to win the ICJ seat.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi himself is believed to have taken up the matter with some of the world leaders.
After Bhandari's re-election, he congratulated him and said: "His re-election is a proud moment for us".
He also expressed gratitude to the members of the UN General Assembly and the UN Security Council for "their support and trust in India."