Ship captain gets lifer for murder of sailor

Dubai, June 12 (UNI) An Indian ship captain was sentenced to life imprisonment by a UAE court in Fujairah while five crew members were given a five-year jail term for the murder of an Indian sailor.

Sudheer Nonia Jagannathan, 31, who was a crew member on the Norwegian oil tanker 'Champion Pioneer', was beaten to death by his colleagues on board the ship on February 6 on the alleged orders of captain Jitendra Malhotra, the court said.

The murder took place while the vessel, which was sailing from Mangalore Port to Fujairah, was in international waters off the coast of Fujairah.

According to the court verdict, Malhotra ordered the sailors to beat up the victim, who hailed from Mumbai and was working as a fitter.

Jagannathan's body was taken to India after completing the legal procedures in the UAE.

Reports said the Indian consulate in Dubai had requested the local authorities to shift the case to India as all the accused and victim were Indians, but the UAE courts claimed jurisdiction over the matter.

The relatives of Jagannathan, who died of a head injury during a fight on board, had pardoned the accused currently lodged in a Fujairah jail.

However, the letter of pardon was not attested by the state of Maharashtra, as required by the rules.

While Malhotra was served with a lifer, Sumeet Bhola, Maher Gurprit Singh, Moosa Kounge, Pramod Chavan, Skariah Money Mannil and Datta Suman were sentenced to five years each in jail.

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