211 Indian fishermen in Pakistan’s custody, 24 of them are from Daman & Diu

As per the response from Union minister of External Affairs S Jaishankar to Patel’s question, 24 of the 211 inmates, believed to be Indian fishermen as per information shared by Pakistan, are from the Union Territory of Daman & Diu. The minister further said that since 2014, 2,639 fishermen have been repatriated from Pakistan.

To Surjewala’s question dealing with the arrest of fishermen by both Sri Lanka and Pakistan in the last five years, information provided by Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh in the Rajya Sabha showed 535 fishermen arrested by the Sri Lankan authorities till December 5, 2024, and 19 arrested by Pakistan security agencies this year till July 1.

There are currently 1,172 fishing boats in Pakistan’s custody, as per MEA Jaishankar’s reply in the Lower House. His statement added that Pakistan has been asked to expedite the release and repatriation of all Indian fishermen, “who have completed their sentence and whose nationality has been confirmed. Pakistan has also been asked to provide immediate consular access to the remaining fishermen in Pakistan’s custody, who are believed-to-be-Indian”.

With respect to Sri Lanka, MoS Singh said that Jaishankar discussed the issues related to fishermen with the new political leadership in October last.