Italy Ship: Deadlock over Indian fishermen's murder case

Kochi, Feb 18: After the diplomatic turn in the Indian fishermen's dead, no arrests have been made so far. It has been expected that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Ministry of External Affair will be consulted in the issue.

Two days back, the two Indian fishermen were allegedly killed by the crew members of Italian ship Enrica Lexie.

While, the Kochi police have registered a murder case against the crew members.

Taking a stand on the incident, Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy said that. "We will not allow the men to escape the legal proceedings. We are taking it as a very serious case."

"There is a problem about the jurisdiction. But we have registered a case under Indian penal code. Their authorities are claiming that the case should be pursued under international law. The exact spot is yet to established through technical corroboration. Will wait for diplomatic correspondence," said S Anand Krishnan, IG of internal security in Kerala.

While, Anand Krishnan, IG of internal security in Kerala told the media that it is still unclear about the exact location of the firing, despite of the Ministry of Home Affairs's (MHA) statement that the incident might have taken place in Indian waters.

"It is internationally well known fact that whenever pirates attack there is a proper protocol to tackle it. The protocol was not followed by the Italian ship. There was a delay made by the crew in contacting the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC)," said GK Vasan, Minister for Shipping.

Meanwhile, the crew members has denied to answer the questions and said that they will coopearte only after discussing the issue with their diplomats.They are waiting for the arrival of the diplamats team from Italy to meet the Indian officials in Delhi.

OneIndia News