The men were not being held illegally ly, but by the shipping agent with Indian police protection
The Madras High Court in India has agreed to release crewmembers of the Panama-flagged Mirach, who were detained in a hotel in Nagerkoil, Tamil Nadu since their ship sunk on 4 April.
The ruling, on 27 June, follows a petition brought by ITF inspector K Sreekumar calling for their immediate release. The seven Azerbaijan and Turkish seafarers flew home on 29 June; an eighth detained crewmember, the second officer, had been allowed to return home earlier following the death of his father. A further 15 crewmembers who were also detained following the accident had been allowed to go home previously.
The success of the petition follows an earlier court claim that the men were not being held illegally, but by the shipping agent with Indian police protection. The police had confiscated the seafarers passports. In the petition, K Sreekumar cited the IMO/ILO guidelines on fair treatment of seafarers in the event of a maritime accident, claiming that the withholding of the mens passports amounted to illegal detention.
The Mirachs Turkish captain, Oktay Cullu, told the Times of India: We thank the ITF, Sailors Helpline and the media for helping us.”
Source: ITF