Chennai: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin on Tuesday told the Centre that eight more fishermen from the state have been apprehended by the Sri Lankan Navy and expressed concern over the “alarming recurrence” of such arrests.
This was the second such incident within a week, with the Lankan Navy having apprehended 11 Indian fishermen on August 23 for alleged maritime boundary violation.
In the latest instance, eight fishermen who set sail from Rameswaram were arrested and their boat seized, Stalin told External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar in a letter. “At present, 116 fishermen and 184 boats are in Sri Lankan custody. The alarming recurrence of such incidents has caused immense distress to the families of the arrested fishermen,” Stalin said in the letter.