Sri Lankan Navy said on Sunday that it arrested 32 Indian fishermen and seized their five fishing boats for allegedly venturing into the territorial waters of the island nation.
In a statement, the Sri Lankan Navy said the arrests occurred during a special operation in the sea area north of Mannar in the wee hours of Sunday.
"The Sri Lanka Navy seized 5 Indian fishing boats and apprehended 32 Indian fishermen while they were poaching in Sri Lankan waters," the statement said.
The Navy continues to conduct regular patrols and operations in Sri Lankan waters to curb illegal fishing practices of foreign fishing boats, taking into account the impact of those practices on the livelihood of local fishermen, it said.
The arrested fishermen and their boats were brought to the Talaimannar Pier, where they will be handed over to the Fisheries Inspector of Mannar for legal action.
The Navy has so far this year arrested 131 Indian fishermen and seized 18 fishing boats for allegedly poaching in Sri Lankan waters, the statement said.
Earlier this month, the Sri Lankan Navy arrested 10 Indian fishermen and seized their boat for allegedly venturing into the territorial waters of the island nation.
In January, five Indian fishermen sustained injuries, including two seriously, in an incident of firing by the Sri Lankan Navy in the proximity of Delft Island, triggering a strong reaction by India.
India said the use of force is not "acceptable" under any circumstances whatsoever.
The Indian high commission in Colombo raised the matter with the Sri Lankan foreign ministry.
Convene joint working group immediately: Stalin to Centre
Expressing concern over the 'alarming' rise in arrest of Indian fishermen from Tamil Nadu by the Sri Lankan navy, Chief Minister M K Stalin on Sunday urged the Centre to immediately convene the Joint Working Group to find a permanent solution to the issue.
The CM wrote to External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, flagging the latest detention of 32 Indian fishermen and five boats by the Lankan navy.
"I write this letter with a sense of deep anguish as the number of incidents of apprehensions of Tamil Nadu fishermen by the Sri Lankan Navy have risen alarmingly in the recent times. In the latest incident, 32 fishermen have been apprehended by the Sri Lankan Navy on 23.02.2025 along with their five mechanised fishing boats...these fishermen had ventured for fishing from the Rameswaram fishing harbour on 22.02.2025," Stalin said in his letter.
The apprehensions of Tamil Nadu fishermen by the Sri Lankan Navy are still continuing in large numbers inspite of his repeated requests to prevail upon Colombo to prevent such arrests. So far this year, 119 fishermen and 16 boats have been apprehended by the Sri Lankan navy in eight separate incidents, he added.
"Hence, I once again reiterate my earlier request to convene the Joint Working Group immediately to find a permanent solution to this long pending issue. This is especially crucial since the livelihoods of our fishermen families are impacted severely, due to these apprehensions."
"In view of the above, I request you to take strong diplomatic efforts to prevent the arrests of our fishermen and to secure the release of all the apprehended fishermen and their fishing boats from the Sri Lankan authorities at the earliest," the CM added.
The fishermen issue is a contentious one in the ties between India and Sri Lanka, with Lankan Navy personnel even firing at Indian fishermen in the Palk Strait and seizing their boats in several alleged incidents of illegally entering Sri Lankan territorial waters.
In 2024, the island nation's Navy arrested 529 Indian fishermen for allegedly poaching in Sri Lankan waters.
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