Due to the ship’s 76-day detention at Kochi
Naples-based Dolphin Tanker Srl, owners of Italian oil tanker Enrica Lexie which was involved in the killing of two Indian fishermen on February 15 off the Kerala coast, is planning to approach the court to seek compensation from the Kerala Government for the alleged losses it suffered due to the ship’s 76-day detention at Kochi.
The company says that it had suffered losses to the tune of several crores of rupees in terms of handling charges paid to the Kochi Port Trust, other expenses and loss of business due to the long and allegedly unnecessary detention. The company’s counsel said that they would approach the court “at the earliest”.
The ship, which berthed at Kochi port on February 17 some 40 hours after the killing of the fishermen, was in detention till May 4, the day it left the Indian shores on the basis of a Supreme Court order after furnishing a bond for Rs 3 crore and a demand draft for equal amount, which itself was cause of a dispute.
The company says that the State Government had extended the detention of the vessel unnecessarily even after all legal procedures for which it was needed at Kochi had been completed by February 25. It says that this delay occurred due to the wrong legal advices provided to the Government.
A special investigation team of the Kerala Police had arrested the two Italian Marines, accused of shooting the two fishermen to death, on February 19 from aboard the vessel. The examinations on board the ship and confiscation of documents and the weapons allegedly used for the crime were completed by February 25, says the company.
Confirming that they would be moving the court for compensation, shipping company lawyer VJ Mathew said that they were yet to assess the exact losses incurred by the detention of the vessel at Kochi but added that it could run into several crores of rupees. Also, they were yet to decide the volume of compensation to be sought from the Government, he said.
When the shipping company’s plea seeking release of the ship came up before the Kerala High Court on March 28, Kerala Advocate General KP Dandapani had opposed it saying release could not be granted till the forensic and ballistic tests of the guns seized from it were over but the Centre had raised no objection.
On April 3, a division bench of the Kerala High Court refused permission for the ship to leave Kochi as it set aside a March 29 order of a single-judge bench that allowed the ship to set sail after submitting bank guarantee for Rs 3 crore. The division bench’s order was on the basis of petitions filed by the relatives of the murdered fishermen.
Following this, Dolphin Tanker Srl approached the Supreme Court which on May 2 allowed the ship to leave Kochi almost under the same conditions set earlier by the High Court’s single-judge bench. The company submitted a bond for Rs 3 crore to the High Court’s Registrar General the following day but he insisted that it should furnish a demand draft for equal amount.
According to the company, it had to pay Rs 10 lakh as pilotage fee to the port trust every time it was called to the harbour from the outer berth where it was anchored under police guard since February 25. In addition to that, it was also made to pay Rs 300,000 a day on the basis of tonnage, the company says.
Source: Daily Pioneer
