The Sri Lankan Navy on Sunday arrested 14 Indian fishermen off Delft islands, near Jaffna Peninsula, on charges of poaching in Sri Lankan waters.
Three trawlers in their possession were seized, Navy officials said. The arrested fishermen were likely to be produced before the Kayts Magistrate, officials in the Indian Consulate in Jaffna — who were in touch with the fishermen — said.
The arrest comes days after five Indian fishermen on death row in Sri Lanka were released by the Sri Lankan government. The fishermen were arrested in Sri Lankan waters in November 2011, on charges of drug trafficking.
Recently, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj asked Tamil Nadu fishermen to refrain from crossing the International Maritime Boundary Line (IMBL). The government was making efforts to secure the release of 24 fishermen arrested by the Sri Lankan Navy and the 79 trawlers in their custody, she had said.
