Fishers, political parties stage massive protest in Ramnad, seek release of fishers jailed in Sri Lanka
RAMANATHAPURAM: Condemning the continuous arrest of Indian fishermen by the Sri Lankan Navy, hundreds of fishermen from several districts gathered in Rameswaram to stage a protest, on Friday.
The protesters demanded the immediate release of the arrested fishermen, and secure the boats seized by the Sri Lankan Navy.
Over the past couple of weeks, as many as 12 boats, including 4 country boats and nearly 74 fishermen from Tamil Nadu have been arrested and jailed by the Sri Lankan Navy for alleged violation of the International Maritime Boundary Line (IMBL).
A Sri Lankan court has extended the custody of the fishermen multiple, leaving the fishermen and their families to face hardships.
Even as Chief Minister MK Stalin has written to the union government, seeking action to secure the release of the fishermen, no action has been taken so far.
Earlier, the DMK and the Congress led a massive protest, along with fishermen from several districts in Rameswaram on Sunday.
Jesuraj, a fishermen’s association leader from Rameswaram, said that apart from the fishermen who were arrested in recent weeks, there are about six other fishermen in Sri Lankan jails. They must be released and brought back to India. Also, since 2018, more than 170 Indian boats have been confiscated by the Sri Lankan government, which the union government must retrieve. The fishermen also said that three jailed fishermen require medical attention owing to their poor health, and immediate action should be taken towards securing their release to provide them with better medical care.
Fishermens’ association stated that if no action is taken, a series of protests will be held. Congress MPs Vijay Vasanth and Robert Bruce, along with Ramanathapuram MLA Kadar Batcha Muthuramalingam and others were present during the protest.