Close on the heels of the Mercantile Marine Department ordering detention of a foreign cargo ship involved in a collision with a fishing vessel off Kochi, the Kerala High Court on Friday directed that the Panama-flagged vessel be detained until further orders.
The directive was passed on a writ petition seeking a directive to detain the foreign vessel Amber L till the claims by the surviving fishermen for a compensation of ₹6.85 crore are satisfied or the owner of the foreign vessel or its shipping agent furnished security for the amount.
The petition was filed by the fishermen who survived the accident. According to them, the master of the foreign vessel was negligent and rash in navigating the vessel, resulting in the accident and destruction of the petitioners’ fishing boat, its accessories, their catch, and personal belongings.
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The petitioners said they intended to file legal proceedings for the recovery of the loss and seek damages from the foreign vessel’s owner or agent. However, if the vessel was allowed to sail out of the Indian territorial waters, the petitioners would not be able to pursue their claim against the foreign vessel whose owner did not have any assets in the country. Therefore, unless their claims were satisfied or security for the amount was furnished, the foreign vessel shall not be allowed to sail out of the Indian waters.
The petition was posted for further hearing on June 27.