Sri Lanka detains three Tamil Nadu fishermen for intruding into territorial waters

Three Indian fishermen from Tamil Nadu have been apprehended by the Sri Lankan navy, ANI reported on Sunday.

Tamil Nadu: Three Indian fishermen with one boat apprehended by Sri Lankan Navy at Palk Strait.

— ANI (@ANI) July 9, 2017

This comes after a series of arrests by the island nation this year, claiming that Tamil fishermen illegally entered Sri Lankan waters. Eight fishermen were arrested by the Sri Lankan Navy on 6 July for fishing in the island nation’s territorial waters. [caption id=“attachment_3539017” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Representational image. Reuters[/caption] The navy personnel also seized two boats of the fishermen belonging to Kottaipattinam in Pudukottai district late last night, Fisheries Department Assistant Director Chandrasekhar said. All the fishermen were taken to Kagesanthurai. The Tamil Nadu government, on two separate occasions in the last one month, requested Centre to intervene on the issue and take necessary steps in the right direction to ensure that Indian fishermen were not repeatedly held by Sri Lankan naval officers. The Tamil Nadu government expressed concern on 26 June over the “alarming increase” in number of “attacks” on Indian fishermen by the Sri Lankan Navy and sought the Centre’s intervention for release of all the 42 captured. Referring to a spate of “distressing” arrests of Indian fishermen from his state in the month of June, Chief Minister E Palaniswamy said such apprehensions have had a “demoralising impact” on fishermen as well as the people of the state. In a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he raised the issue of arrest of 14 fishermen in two separate instances by the Lankan navy on 24 June. Tamil Nadu finance minister D Jayakumar, on 30 June had requested External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj to take steps for the release of Indian fishermen along with their boats from Sri Lankan authorities. Palaniswamy had also requested the prime minister to order the external affairs ministry to register a strong protest with the Lankan authorities over the continuous ‘abductions’. The chief minister also sought the immediate release of the fishermen.   With inputs from PTI