Siva Parameswaran
The Indian government has lodged a strong protest with Sri Lanka over an incident of the Sri Lankan Navy opening fire on Indian fishermen in the early hours of Tuesday the 28th of January’25.
The Sri Lankan Navy opened fire at the Indian fishermen who trespassed into their territorial waters off the coast of Valvettithurai.
Two fishermen from the city of Karaikkal administered by the Union Territory of Pondicherry were injured in the shooting by the Sri Lankan Navy. According to the fishermen in Karaikkal, one of their fisher folk suffered a fracture below the knee while the other sustained an injury below his ankle.
After the firing incident, the two injured Indian fishermen were admitted to the Jaffna Teaching Hospital, and their condition is said to be stable. The Indian Consul General in Jaffna, Sai Murali, visited them at the hospital.
Following this, the Sri Lankan envoy in Delhi was summoned by the Indian External Affairs ministry and a protest was lodged.
“The Sri Lankan Acting High Commissioner in New Delhi was called in today morning to the Ministry of External Affairs and a strong protest was lodged over the incident. Our High Commission in Colombo has also raised the matter with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Sri Lankan government”.
According to the media release by the Indian External Affairs Ministry among the 13 fishermen on board the fishing vessel, two have sustained serious injuries.
While the Indian government and fishermen in Karaikkal say their fishermen sustained serious injuries, the Sri Lankan Navy says slight injuries were caused to the Indian fishermen.
The boat has been seized by the Sri Lankan Navy.
“The government of India has always emphasized the need to treat issues pertaining to fishermen in a humane and humanitarian manner, keeping in mind livelihood concerns. The use of force is not acceptable under any circumstances whatsoever. Existing understandings between the two Governments in this regard must be strictly observed”.
The date and place of the shooting incident also vary in the statements of the two governments.
The Indian Government’s media release said the incident of firing by the Sri Lankan Navy was in the proximity of Delft Island in the early hours of the morning (28). But the Sri Lankan Navy says the Indian fishing boats were poaching in the Sri Lankan waters off Valvettithurai, Jaffna in the dark hours of 27 Jan 25.
Indian fishermen’s continued trespassing into the Sri Lankan territorial waters and poaching the aquatic resources was a prominent issue discussed by the Indian PM and the Sri Lankan President during his recent visit to New Delhi, the first overseas visit after being elected the President of the island nation.
During the meeting between Indian PM Narendra Modi and Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake in Delhi, the leaders said the fishermen issue was an important issue.
“We discussed the fishermen issue is to be dealt with in a humanitarian way,” Indian PM told in a joint media meeting with the visiting Sri Lankan President.
President Dissanayake in his post on social media platform X said their discussion included “stopping illegal fishing”. In his speech along with the Indian PM, he expressed his concern over the ecological damage in the Palk Strait due to illegal fishing methods.
The fishermen from the Northern Province strongly criticized the Indian PM’s comment that the fishermen’s issue is to be dealt with in a humanitarian way.
“The demand from the Indian PM looks like telling Sri Lanka to stop arresting Indian fishermen seizing their boats and releasing those arrested and their boats. The Indian PM is very clearly saying to allow their fishermen to fish in our waters. It’s ridiculous to hear such a stand” Mohammed Alam, secretary of the Northern Province Fishermen’s Federation said at that time.
Despite the leaders meeting and discussing the fishermen issue, the incursion of the Indian fishermen into the Sri Lankan waters continues unabated.
In the present incident, the Sri Lankan Navy says the Indian fishing boat continued to maneuver aggressively, without complying with their lawful orders and its duty, during the process of taking the boat into custody.
“On this occasion, the Indian fishermen have acted aggressively, maneuvering their fishing boat in a hostile manner and behaving confrontationally with the Navy. However, while boarding the fishing boat, in accordance with the authority vested in the Navy, the Indian fishermen, as an organized group, have attempted to assault naval personnel and made an attempt to snatch a firearm from a naval officer, endangering the lives of the naval personnel. In the process, an accidental fire has taken place, causing slight injuries to two Indian fishermen”.
