New Delhi:
External Affair's minister SM Krishna today said that the loss of 'innocent lives' could have been avoided in the fishermen killing case in which the crew of an Italian ship fired at and killed two Indians off the Kollam coast in Kerala, a press release from the Ministry of External Affairs said.
According to the MEA's statement, Italy's Foreign Affair's minister Mr. Giulio Maria Terzi gave Mr Krishna a call today in connection with the case. Expressing his regret at the loss of lives of the fishermen, he said that both the countries should work together to establish the facts related to the case and 'determine responsibilities'.
Mr Krishna in turn said that the fishermen's lives could have been saved if the naval personnel on board the Italian ship Enrica Lexie had been careful and exercised restraint, the statement said.
Refuting earlier claims by Italian embassy officials in Delhi that the Indian vessel attacked the Italian ship in international waters, Mr Krishna said that Indian authorities had information that no firearms were present on board the fishing vessel, which was only carrying fishing nets and fish.
Stressing that the law must be allowed to take its course, he said that the Italian ship crew, especially the captain and the two men involved, must cooperate with the Indian authorities. No arrests have been made in the case so far.
In his conversation with Mr Terzi, Mr Krishna mentioned that there is agitation in the state of Kerala over the killings. Chief minister Oommen Chandy had earlier said that it was a 'very serious issue'.
Police officials have conducted various rounds of discussions onboard the vessel with its captain and crew, but the crew was not willing to surrender to the Indian government, and were awaiting a confirmation from Italian authorities.
Ajesh Binki, 25, from Tamil Nadu and Gelastine, 45, from Kerala, were mistaken for pirates and shot dead by the crew of an Italian ship on Wednesday evening about 14 nautical miles off Alappuzha.