Madurai: Sri Lankan navy apprehended 11 Indian fishermen and their fishing trawler on charges of poaching in their territorial waters in the early hours of Thursday. The trawler was among those that embarked on a fishing expedition from Rameswaram fishing jetty on Wednesday morning.
The navy said its northern command, on spotting a group of Indian fishing boats engaging in illegal fishing off Delft Island, deployed its craft to drive away them away. One boat with eleven fishermen which continued in Sri Lankan waters was seized. The boat and the fishermen were brought to Kankasanthurei. The fishermen were produced before Oorkavalthurai court and remanded in judicial custody till April 9. The remanded fishermen were lodged in Jaffna prison.
Meanwhile, Tamil Nadu chief minister M K Stalin wrote to external affairs minister S Jaishankar reiterating his requests for intensified diplomatic efforts to prevent recurring arrests of Indian fishermen, and secure immediate release of all those fishermen and fishing boats under detention in Sri Lanka. He said 147 fishermen and 19 boats have been detained in 11 separate incidents in the last three months by Sri Lankan navy. Recalling Jaishankar’s assurances and his meeting with the Sri Lankan President in December in this regard, Stalin said that despite these efforts, apprehensions of Tamil Nadu fishermen had escalated. He urged the minister to extend all possible consular and legal assistance to secure the immediate release of the fishermen. PMK leader Anbumani Ramadoss has also condemned the arrest and urged the Union govt to convene bilateral talks between the two countries to resolve the issue.