O Paneerselvam writes to Modi after arrest of 10 more fishermen

The fishermen from Rameswaram and Pudukottai district were apprehended and their boats impounded in two separate incidents. As the latest arrest came barely days after Sri Lanka agreed to release the 51 fishermen already in its custody, Chief Minister O Panneerselvam wrote a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking his intervention to secure the release of the 20 fishermen. Panneerselvam thanked Modi for ensuring the release of 51 Indian fishermen from Tamil Nadu, but rued over the arrest of 20 fishermen, including 10. 

“Unfortunately, even before the sense of relief following the release of the 51 fishermen could fully set in and they reached our shores, the Sri Lankan Navy has yet again resorted to its harsh and unjust tactic of apprehending fishermen from Tamil Nadu peacefully pursuing their avocation in the traditional fishing waters of the Palk Bay,” he said in the letter. 

The state “is extremely concerned about the continuing frequent apprehension and detention of our fishermen,” Panneerselvam said. “As you are aware, in 2016 itself 290 Tamil Nadu fishermen along with their 53 fishing boats were apprehended in 39 incidents. Subsequently, all 290 fishermen were released due to the unstinted efforts of our revered leader (Jayalalithaa),” he noted. 

He recalled that even though Sri Lanka released the fishermen, it however, did not return their boats and fishing gear. Panneerselvam urged Modi to direct the Ministry of External Affairs to take expeditious steps to secure the release of a total of 20 fishermen and 118 fishing boats without any delay. The Chief Minister also reiterated the state’s demand for a Rs 1,650 crore deep-sea fishing and infrastructure package. 

Meanwhile, the mechanised boat fishermen of Rameswaram have decided to stage rail-roko across the state. Police said on Sunday that the Rameswaram court has ordered the release of three Sri Lankan fishermen based on recommendation from the Centre.