Lankan Navy arrests 7 Indian fishermen, Palaniswami seeks Modi's intervention

Just couple of days after Tamil Nadu chief minister Edappadi K Palaniswami sought Prime Minister Narendra Modi's personal intervention to take diplomatic measures for the release of Indian fishermen, who are in Sri Lankan custody, seven more fishermen were arrested on Thursday by the Lankan navy on the charges of International Maritime Boundary Line (IMBL) violation.

  Fisheries department sources here said that fishermen from Ramanathapuram district were fishing in deep sea in Nedutheevu, which was close to Sri Lanka coast.   The Lankan Navy also seized two boats from them. This is the third instance of the arrest of fishermen by Lankan navy in July alone. 

Meanwhile, urging Modi to take measures for releasing the fishermen from Srilankan custody, Palaniswami said almost every fishing voyage of the fishermen is disrupted with repeated incidents of apprehension or harassment by the Sri Lankan Navy.

 "Such continuing incidents of apprehensions of the traditional fishermen are seen as a deliberate attempt to derail the efforts to find a permanent solution through diplomatic efforts of Centre", he said and exhorted the Prime Minister to take up the matter with Sri Lanka and arrange for the immediate release of all 60 fishermen, who were in the Srilankan custody.