KARAIKAL: The judicial custody of 13 Indian fishermen arrested by Sri Lanka on January 28 has been extended to another 14 days, upsetting the Karaikal fisherfolk who had protested here for several days, demanding their release.
The fishers from Karaikal in Puducherry and Tamil Nadu who had ventured into sea from the Karaikal fishing harbour on January 27 were arrested by Sri Lankan Navy the next day for allegedly crossing the International Maritime Boundary Line.
The magistrate court at Mallakam in Jaffna had ordered the custody of the 13 fishers initially till February 10 and then till February 24. On Monday the court extended it for the second time till March 14. C Senthamizh who was shot and injured during the confrontation between the fishers and the Sri Lankan Navy is still under treatment at the Teaching Hospital in Jaffna.
The others in the 13-member group, including two more persons injured in the firing, are under judicial custody in Jaffna Prison. MK Gajendiran, a representative from Kilinjalmedu in Karaikal, said, "After protesting for two weeks, our folk ventured into the sea today in the hope that our colleagues in Jaffna would be released and returned.
However, their judicial custody has been extended. We are disappointed with the efforts of the Union and Puducherry governments." P Govindassamy, the deputy director of Puducherry fisheries and fishermen welfare department, said, "The governments are continuing to do their best for the repatriation of fishers in Sri Lanka."