SC closes case against Italian Marines accused of killing fishermen off Kerala coast

New Delhi, June 15: The Supreme Court has closed the case against the Italian Marines, accused of killing two fishermen off the Kerala coast.

On Friday, the Supreme Court had agreed to close all proceedings in India against the marines, while exercising jurisdiction under Article 142 and said that it would pass a formal order on June 15. We accept what you are proposing. We will pass our order on Tuesday," the Bench comprising Justices Indira Banerjee and M R Shah said after they were informed that compensation of Rs 10 crore for the victims had been deposited in the court's registry.

The Bench said that the money should be transferred to the registry of the Kerala High Court so that the disbursement is properly monitored and not frittered away. Appearing for the Centre, Solicitor General, Tushar Mehta accepted the suggestion by the court. The same was also accepted by the counsel appearing for the Kerala Government and Republic of Italy.

In April, the Centre had informed the court that the families of the two Indian fishermen killed by the Italian Marines have been adequately compensated, while seeking expeditious closure of the proceedings in the Supreme Court and a a special court in Delhi.

The Italian government had offered to pay Rs 10 crore in damages. The families had agreed to a compensation of Rs 4 crore each in addition to the 2 crore already paid by the Italian government. The injured owner of the boat had also consented to receiving damages of Rs 2 crore. The proposal was also accepted by the Kerala government.