Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin on Monday wrote to External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar seeking his intervention in securing the release of 15 fishermen and their boats from the Sri Lankan Navy - which arrested them on July 9.
In a letter to Jaishankar, Stalin said the fishermen had ventured out for fishing in their boats bearing registration numbers IND-TN-10-MM-677 and IND-TN-10-MM-913 and were apprehended by the Sri Lankan Navy on July 9.
Incidents of Sri Lankan Navy personnel arresting Indian fishermen from Tamil Nadu for allegedly transgressing into its water are common, despite both countries taking several measures to prevent such incidents.
Stalin told Jaishankar that the fishermen’s livelihood depends on fishing activities in the waters near the Indo-Sri Lankan maritime boundary and that they solely rely on fishing to sustain their families and communities.
“Unfortunately, incidents of apprehension by the Sri Lankan Navy have become distressingly frequent, plunging the fishermen and their families into deep anguish and uncertainty,” Stalin told Jaishankar, asking him to to intervene diplomatically with the Sri Lankan authorities to secure the immediate release of the apprehended fishermen.
Through diplomatic channels, the External Affairs Ministry can reach an amicable resolution that respects the rights and livelihoods of Indian fishermen while maintaining friendly bilateral relations between India and Sri Lanka, Stalin added in the letter.
Published 10 July 2023, 10:23 IST