CHENNAI: The Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly on Wednesday unanimously adopted a resolution moved by Chief Minister M K Stalin, urging the Union government to initiate all possible steps to retrieve Katchatheevu Island from Sri Lanka by reviewing the pact signed between India and the island nation in 1974.
This is the fourth time the Tamil Nadu Assembly has passed such a resolution, with earlier ones moved by former CMs J Jayalalithaa (1991, 2013) and O Panneerselvam (2014).
“Retrieval of Katchatheevu can be the only permanent solution to safeguard the traditional fishing rights of Tamil Nadu fishermen and avert all the troubles faced by them from the Sri Lankan Navy,” the resolution stated.
The resolution comes just days before Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Sri Lanka on April 4 (Friday) and to Rameswaram on April 6 (Sunday) to inaugurate the new Pamban Rail Bridge.
The resolution urged Modi to use the Sri Lankan visit to engage with the government there and secure the release of Indian fishermen lodged in prisons and boats seized by Sri Lanka as a goodwill measure. Though opposition parties AIADMK and BJP questioned the DMK’s renewed interest in the issue, they extended their full support to the resolution.
97 Indian fishers still in SL jail: CM
In his speech before moving the resolution, Stalin expressed concern over the continued arrests, boat seizures, and fines imposed on TN fishermen by the Sri Lankan authorities, despite repeated appeals to the Union government.
Citing External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar’s recent statement in the Rajya Sabha, Stalin said that 97 Indian fishermen are currently imprisoned in Sri Lanka, with 530 arrests recorded in 2024 alone. Questioning whether similar treatment of fishermen from other states would be tolerated, Stalin criticised the BJP-led centre for its inaction.
Addressing criticisms of the DMK for allegedly allowing the ceding of Katchatheevu under the 1974 agreement, Stalin accused the centre of spreading misinformation.
CM said the then DMK MPs opposed the move in Parliament before the agreement was signed, with the then CM Karunanidhi convening an all-party meeting the very next day after the pact was signed and sending a letter to the then PM Indira Gandhi, condemning the move. The CM said he had written 74 letters to the PM and EAM on the issue.
LS seats: CM seeks PM’s appointment
Chief Minister M K Stalin on Wednesday reiterated his request for an appointment with Prime Minister Narendra Modi to present a memorandum on the demand for ‘fair delimitation’ by an all-party team of MPs, who were part of the Joint Action Committee (JAC) on delimitation