The Union Home Ministry has sought opinion from the Law Ministry on who will now represent the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in the Italian marines’ case as senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, who earlier represented the Italian government in the case, has been appointed Attorney General.
According to NIA sources, the then Additional Solicitor General Sidharth Luthra represented it in the case and Mr. Rohatgi was counsel for the Italian government in the Supreme Court.
“After Mr. Rohatgi’s appointment as the Attorney General, he would recuse himself from the case. In view of these facts, we have sought appropriate directions from the MHA on further course of action,” said an NIA official.
The NIA’s stance is that the marines should be tried under the Suppression of Unlawful Acts Against Safety of Maritime Navigation and Fixed Platforms on Continental Shelf Act (SUA), which has two different provisions that attract death penalty and life imprisonment.
While the government initially gave the go-ahead, following objections from the Italian government, it partially withdrew the order allowing the agency to press charges under SUA provisions which entail only life imprisonment.
Subsequently, the government withdrew the sanction wholly, directing the NIA to proceed under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) provisions instead and apprised the Supreme Court in this regard.
Contending that IPC was not applicable in the case, the Italian government has now submitted that the Italian marines enjoyed immunity from prosecution as their act was part of their sovereign duty. The NIA had earlier questioned four Italian marines who were witnesses.
