Crew of Iraqi cargo vessel denied entry at Karwar port as per instructions from Centre: Parameshwara

Bengaluru, May 16 (PTI) The crew members of an Iraqi cargo vessel were denied permission to disembark at Karwar port in Karnataka by the coastal security authorities as per special instructions given by the central government "after the Pakistan incident", Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara said on Friday.

According to a senior port official, permission was not given for the crew of an Iraqi cargo vessel to disembark at Karwar port due to the presence of Pakistan and Syrian nationals among them. They were repatriated, he said on Wednesday.

Reacting to this development, Parameshwara told reporters here, "After this Pakistan incident, special instructions have been given by the Government of India to all the armed forces and the state departments. So, we as a state, have a coastal survey force.... they have stopped (the crew of an Iraqi cargo vessel from disembarking at Karwar port). Naturally, every vessel will be scrutinised before letting it into our water. So they have done a good job. I think whatever the instructions have been given to them, they have done a good job," he told reporters here.

According to senior port officials, the ship, which had departed from Al Zubair, Iraq, was carrying bitumen and docked at Karwar with a crew comprising 15 Indian nationals, one Pakistani, and two Syrians.

Following standard inspection protocols and heightened vigilance, the presence of Pakistani and Syrian nationals aboard the vessel prompted a security response from port authorities and the Coastal Security Police, he said.

Their mobile phones were confiscated through the ship's captain to restrict communication, and they remained confined on board for two days while the cargo was unloaded.

The vessel has since left Indian waters with the individuals on board, as per directives, the port official had said. PTI AMP ADB