THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi urging the Centre to build international pressure for a fair trial of the two marines in the Enrica Lexie case. The duo —Salvatore Girone and Massimiliano Latorre — were accused of shooting two fishermen to death off the coast of Kerala in 2012. Pinarayi, in his letter, said the matter deserved a more sensitive and cautious handling by the Central government. The tribunal’s decision against the trial of the accused in India was shocking and unfortunate, he said.
“The matter definitely deserved a more sensitive and cautious handling from the beginning and during the proceedings in the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS), as it involved the loss of life of two innocent Indians. Whatever be the technicalities of the international conventions, the decision of the ITLOS has resulted in added grief to the bereaved families and people of Kerala. I wish to convey our strong feelings in the issue,” he said.
If the tribunal’s award is not appealable, Pinarayi asked Modi to “take earnest efforts to build international pressure for a fair trial in Italy”. He said that India should bargain for an exemplary amount as compensation.“We should also keep our option of approaching the ITLOS within the stipulated time of one year if getting adequate compensation is not possible through negotiations,” the letter stated.