Pakistan arrests 52 Indian fishermen

Karachi: Pakistani authorities have arrested 52 Indian fishermen for allegedly straying into the country's territorial waters, an official said on Saturday.

The latest batch of Indian fishermen was arrested on Thursday night by the Pakistan Maritime Security Forces, he said. Eight fishing boats were also seized. A judicial magistrate sent the 52 Indian fishermen to judicial remand, the official said.

They will be lodged in the Malir jail here, he said.

Rajesh, 28, couldn't stop crying as policemen lined up the fishermen to take them to the jail.

"Most of us come from a village in Dandi near Gujarat coastal area and we didn't know we had strayed into Pakistani territory while fishing at night," he said. It is neither the first time nor the last time that poor fishermen ended up in jails in both the countries for straying into each other's territorial waters for fishing along the Sir Creek area of Gujarat in the Arabian sea.