13 more Indian fishermen arrested by Sri Lanka Navy repatriated to India

Colombo, Aug 16 (PTI) Thirteen more Indian fishermen, arrested by the Sri Lanka Navy for allegedly fishing in the island nation’s waters, were on Friday repatriated to their homes, the Indian mission here said, days after 17 were sent back to India.

“13 Indian fishermen are on their way home after being successfully repatriated from Sri Lanka,” the Indian mission in Sri Lanka said in a post on X.

The latest development comes after 17 Indian fishermen, arrested by the Sri Lanka Navy for allegedly poaching in the island nation’s waters, were repatriated to their homes in India on Wednesday, the Indian High Commission said in a post on X.

On Wednesday, the Indian mission repatriated 17 fishermen arrested by the Sri Lanka Navy to their homes in India.

Twenty-one Indian fishermen arrested by the Sri Lanka Navy were also repatriated to Chennai from Colombo earlier this month.

The fishermen issue is a contentious topic in the bilateral ties, with Lankan Navy personnel even firing at Indian fishermen in the Palk Strait and seizing their boats in several alleged incidents of illegally entering Sri Lankan territorial waters. Sri Lanka claims a similar attitude by Indian authorities.

The Palk Strait, a narrow strip of water separating Tamil Nadu from Sri Lanka, is a rich fishing ground for fishermen from both countries, who are arrested frequently for inadvertently trespassing into each other’s waters.

On August 1, an Indian fisherman was killed and another went missing following a collision between a Sri Lankan naval vessel and an Indian fishing boat allegedly poaching in the island nation’s territorial waters.