Indian fishermen released

[TamilNet, Monday, 13 January 2003, 18:32 GMT]
Four Indian fishermen who were arrested last year after straying into the Sri Lankan territorial waters in the north last year were handed over to the Indian Navy Monday in mid-sea by the Sri Lankan Navy, sources in Jaffna said.

The four fishermen, all from Nagapatinam in South India, were arrested near the coast of Point Pedro when their boat drifted to the shore due to rough seas. They had been in remand at the Jaffna prison since then on the orders of the Point Pedro Magistrate.

The prison authorities in Jaffna handed the four Indian fishermen over to the Point Pedro Police who in turn handed them over to the Sri Lanka Navy. The Sri Lanka Navy took them in one of their crafts and handed them over to the Indian Navy in mid sea, sources said.