Uproar over Italy's decision, PM says it will be taken up

March 12, 2013
New Delhi, Mar 12: As Italy's refusal to send back its two marines triggered an uproar, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today said the issue will be taken up with that country so that the accused soldiers could be brought back to face trial for alleged murder of two Indian fishermen here.

Left MPs, who met the Prime Minister, said Singh told them that Italy's decision was "unacceptable".

However, PMO sources said Singh only told the delegations that the matter would be looked into and he will ask External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid to take up the issue with Italy.

pmDelegations of angry Left and Congress-led UDF MPs met Singh separately to express anguish and demand his intervention in the "serious" matter.

"We met the Prime Minister and took up the issue of Italian marines. The Prime Minister told us that he came to know about this from newspapers. He assured us that he will ask the External Affairs Minister to look into this issue to intervene in this issue," CPI(M) MP M B Rajesh said.

"He (PM) said this is unacceptable to us," Rajesh added.

Another party MP P Karunakaran told a press conference separately that Singh "told us that this is not acceptable to us" and assured the delegation that the matter would be taken up "strongly" with the Italian government.

When pointed out that the PMO said Singh did not say that the decision is "unacceptable", Rajesh remarked, "it is a lie. If he did not say it is 'unacceptable', it means it is acceptable to the government of India."

Khurshid, meanwhile, said the government is studying Italy's decision, its reasons as also implications.

"We will study and take a rightful position... We will take informed position," he told reporters on the issue which has sparked an outrage in Kerala.

Congress MP P C Chacko, who led UDF-delegation, said, "More than saying whether this is acceptable or not, the Prime Minister has said that he will ask External Affairs Minister to take up this issue and use all diplomatic channels to bring them back."

MPs from Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) and Kerala Congress (Mani) were also part of the UDF delegation.

The agitated MPs met Singh in the wake of Italian Foreign Ministry statement that the marines Massimiliano Latorre and Salvatore Girone will not return to India from Italy where they had gone to cast vote in last month's elections after special permission granted by the Supreme Court.

The two marines are facing trial for allegedly killing two fishermen off the Kerala coast in February last year, mistaking them for pirates.

The Italian Ministry claimed India had not responded to its requests to seek a diplomatic solution to the case and there was now a formal dispute between the two countries over the terms of the United Nations Convention of the Law of the Sea.

CPI-M MP K N Balagopal alleged that it was "the result of a high level conspiracy between somebody holding the highest post in Indian government and Government of Italy." He, however, did not elaborate.

His party colleague P Karunakaran said the Prime Minister told them he would hold consultations with External Affairs Minister to decide on the course of action.

Senior CPI(M) leader Sitaram Yechury said the Prime Minister would also have to explain what "strong measures" the government would take to bring back these marines and ensure their trial under the Indian laws.

"The Italian marines have insulted the judiciary. It is an issue of the law of our land and the marines would have to come back here to face trial," he said.

"In India, the undertrials are not allowed to vote. If that is the norm for Indian undertrials under the Indian laws, why should this be different for the Italian marines," asked Yechury.

Meanwhile, in Thiruvananthapuram fish workers unions organised a protest march to the Secretariat and burnt the effigy of the two marines.

The protesters shouted slogans denouncing the Italian government and their Diplomats in India.

They wanted the state and the Centre to take strong steps to bring back the marines to India and try them under the laws of the country for the offence they had committed in India waters.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
May 21,2020

New Delhi, May 21: As many as 5,609 new COVID-19 cases were reported in India in the last 24 hours, taking the total number of cases in the country to 1,12,359 according to the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

Out of the total cases, 63,624 are active cases, 45,300 patients have been cured/discharged or have migrated and 3,435 deaths have been reported.

With 39,297 cases in total, Maharashtra remains the worst affected state in the country, followed by Tamil Nadu (13,191 cases), Gujarat (12,537 cases), and Delhi (11,088 cases).

The nationwide lockdown imposed as a precautionary measure to contain the spread of coronavirus has been extended till May 31.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
May 11,2020

London, May 11: Fugitive diamond merchant Nirav Modi's five-day extradition trial over the nearly USD2 billion Punjab National Bank (PNB) fraud and money laundering case is set to begin in London's Westminster Magistrates' Court today.

The London High Court rejected Nirav Modi's bail plea in Punjab National Bank (PNB) bank fraud case for the fifth time in early March.

Modi, the prime accused in the PNB fraud case, is currently lodged at Wandsworth prison in south-west London and is wanted for his alleged role in the Rs 13,570 crore loss caused to the Punjab National Bank (PNB) along with his uncle, Mehul Choksi.

Modi, 48, was arrested in March last year by Scotland Yard in connection with the case.

Modi was remanded in custody till February 27, 2020, after he appeared before a UK court on Thursday via video link from his London prison.

The latest bail hearing followed further assurances by Modi, including an increase in the amount of security he had offered as a guarantee as well as stricter bail conditions.

On his last bail application, Modi offered USD 4 million as a security guarantee in return for bail, an offer that was rejected by judges who ruled that there was a real risk that Modi would flee the UK to a country which has no extradition treaty with India.

At the same hearing, the judge ruled that there was "strong evidence" that Modi had engaged in "witness intimidation" and destroying evidence.

Given the seriousness of such allegations, it was all but certain that the latest bail application would be rejected.

Modi's lawyers had contended that their client was being held in difficult conditions at Wandsworth prison and had also claimed that his mental health was deteriorating as a result of his incarceration.

However, ruling at the High Court today, Justice Ian Dove said there was a "clear need for this application to be refused in the present circumstances."

It comes just days after the second sale of assets belonging to Modi valued at millions of dollars.

The items include a luxury Rolls Royce car, a Patek Philippe watch and a painting by the renowned Indian artist Amrita Sher-Gil valued at USD 2.5 million but expected to fetch considerably more.

Meanwhile, Nirav's brother Neeshal Modi, who is also one of the co-conspirators in the PNB scam, has written to Enforcement Directorate, distancing himself from his brother's actions and said that he had no knowledge of it.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
June 4,2020

New Delhi, Jun 4: India's Defence Secretary Ajay Kumar tested positive for COVID-19 on Wednesday, following which the defence ministry carried out a massive contact-tracing exercise, official sources said.

Kumar's condition is stable and he is currently under home-quarantine, they said.

At least 35 officials working at the ministry's headquarters in South Block in the Raisina Hills have been sent on home quarantine after reports of Kumar testing positive for the infection emerged on Wednesday morning.

There was no official comment on Kumar's health condition. The defence ministry spokesperson refused to comment on the issue.

It is learnt that Defence Minister Rajnath Singh did not attend office as part of a precautionary measure.

The offices of the defence minister, the defence secretary, the Army Chief and the Navy Chief are on the first floor of the South Block.

The sources said all laid down protocols on contact-tracing and quarantining of people are being scrupulously followed.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.