CHENNAI: The Madras HC has directed the Greater Chennai Police not to harass the owner of the boat which met with a fatal mishap off the Andhra Pradesh coast. The direction was issued by Justice V Lakshminarayanan on Thursday while hearing an urgent petition filed by Selvazhagan, the boat owner.
“This case would require a counter-affidavit from the respondent police. As the facts are more or less clear, prima facie, this court is of the view that custodial interrogation is not necessary in this case,” the judge said in the interim order. The judge, however, said the petitioner shall present himself before the Kasimedu harbour police daily at 10 am or 6 pm or whenever he is so required for the purpose of inquiry till November 11.
The counsel for the petitioner submitted that his boat with nine crew members left the fishing harbour on October 29. On November 1, the assistant director of fisheries directed all the boats to return to the shores due to Arnab cyclone; out of 70 boats which left the harbour, two had not returned including the petitioner’s boat and so complaints were lodged with the India Coast Guard to trace them. He had also stated that five were dead and search was on for the remaining four.
Special public prosecutor Arun Anbumani, representing the police, submitted the fishing harbour police have registered an FIR based on the complaint lodged by Parvathi, wife of Pakkiri Surya who died in the mishap. Moreover, he said the fisheries department had alerted the ship/boat owners of the cyclone on October 28 but the petitioner had pressured the fishermen to embark on the next day itself. The judge adjourned the case to November 11.
