RAMESWARAM: As many as seven fishermen from Rameswaram along with their boat were apprehended by the Sri Lankan Navy in the wee hours of Sunday when they were fishing near Talaimannar for allegedly intruding into their territorial waters.
The seven fishermen were part of a large group of fishermen who set sail from here on Saturday in 608 mechanised boats, said C.R. Senthilvel, general secretary of the Tamil Nadu Fishermen’s Federation.
The names of the arrested fishermen were given as Joseph Paulraj, Benitto, Nagaraj, Innasi, Subramani, and Muniyasamy and Sathiyaseelan.
Ramanathapuram MP K. Navaskani appealed to the external affairs minister S. Jaishankar to take urgent steps for securing the immediate release of the fishermen.
The names of the arrested fishermen were given as Joseph Paulraj, Benitto, Nagaraj, Innasi, Subramani, and Muniyasamy and Sathiyaseelan. They have been taken to Lankan Navy camp at Mannar and were being interrogated there, he said.
Condemning such repeated arrests of Tamil Nadu fishermen by the Island Navy, he urged the Central government to take steps to get Colombo release all the arrested fishermen immediately and also free their boats. Such highhandedness on the high seas by the Sri Lankan Navy should be stopped and the Indian government should urgently do something about it, pleaded Senthilvel.
