Chief Minister MK Stalin brought up the issue with the Centre on Saturday, requesting that the Sri Lankan Navy take immediate action to free the eleven Indian fishermen who had been detained by them for suspected maritime violations.
They also confiscated one boat.
Mr. Stalin wrote, “I am writing to you with grave concern regarding yet another incident of apprehension of fishermen from Tamil Nadu,” in a letter to External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar. According to him, the fishermen were caught while fishing in the Nagapattinam district, southeast of Kodiakarai.
“As the SL Navy detains eleven Indian fishermen, the chief minister of Tamil Nadu writes to Jaishankar once more.”
“I have made it clear time and time again how frequently these kinds of incidents are happening. The Sri Lankan Navy captured 44 boats and 324 fishermen in 2024 alone. The repeated arrests have a detrimental impact on the fishing community’s means of subsistence, and they continue to cause them great hardships in Tamil Nadu, he said.
The Chief Minister also stated that there have been a few incidents in the last two weeks of unknown Sri Lankan individuals attacking fishermen at sea, and this problem needs to be resolved right away.Mr. Stalin said to Mr. Jaishankar, “Therefore, I urge you to initiate immediate and concrete diplomatic efforts to secure the expeditious release of all our fishermen and their fishing boats.”
Source: NDTV
