Kerala High Court orders conditional arrest of cargo ship in Rs 9,531 crore damage case

Kochi: The Kerala High Court on Monday ordered the conditional arrest of a cargo ship anchored at Vizhinjam Port in connection with a Rs 9,531 crore compensation case filed by the State of Kerala over a major shipwreck and environmental damage.

The vessel, MSC AKITETA II (IMO 9220847), was ordered to be detained after the state accused the owners and managers of another ship which appears to be of the same company, MSC ELSA III (IMO 9123221), of causing severe pollution off the Kerala coast.

The MSC ELSA III had capsized and sunk off Kerala coast on May 25, allegedly releasing oil and cargo that harmed the marine environment, damaged the coastline and affected the livelihood of thousands of fishermen.

Kerala’s Environment Department, which brought the case, said the sunken vessel had 643 cargo containers and that the damage caused was enormous.

The state is seeking Rs 9,531 crore in total — including compensation for environmental harm, clean-up efforts and economic losses to local fishing communities.

The High Court, after hearing arguments from the state’s legal team and the lawyers representing the shipowners, said documents showed both vessels were linked.

It found that both ships appear to be managed by the same company, making them "sister vessels". That allowed the court to order the arrest of MSC AKITETA II to secure the state’s claim arising from the MSC ELSA III disaster.

Justice M A Abdul Hakhim said the ship would remain under arrest unless the owners deposited the full amount or provided security for the claim. However, the court allowed the ship to continue loading and unloading cargo in the meantime.

"The 1st respondent vessel by name “MSC” AKITETA II (IMO 9220847) along with her hull, tackle, engine, machinery spares, gear, apparel, paraphernalia, furniture etc presently anchored in the Vizhinjam Port is ordered to be arrested until Rs 9,531 crores is deposited by the 1st respondent in this Court or until security for the said amount is furnished by the 1st respondent to the satisfaction of this Court," the order said.

The case will be heard again on July 10.