Fishermen shooting case: Supreme Court quashes criminal cases against Italian marines in India
The bench said that as per the international arbitral award accepted by India, the Republic of Italy shall resume further investigation in the case.
Italian marines Massimiliano Latorre and Salvatore Girone had been charged in India for killing two fishermen off Kerala coast in 2012. (File Photo) The Supreme Court on Monday ordered the closure of proceedings in India against two Italian marines, accused of killing two fishermen off the Kerala coast in February 2012.
A vacation bench of Justices Indira Banerjee and M R Shah quashed the FIR and proceedings emanating from the case against the two Italian marines Massimilano Latorre and Salvatore Girone. The bench said that as per the international arbitral award accepted by India, the Republic of Italy shall resume further investigation in the case.
The top court termed the Rs 10 crore compensation paid by the Republic of Italy over and above the payment already made as “reasonable and adequate”.
On Friday, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta had informed the bench of Justices Indira Banerjee and M R Shah that Rs 10 crore compensation, which Italy had agreed to pay the families of the victims, had been deposited in the court Registry in line with its earlier directive.
The compensation is a mutually agreed amount between India and Italy in terms of the award by an international tribunal. The Supreme Court had earlier said that Rs 4 crore each out of the compensation will go to the next of kin of the two fishermen while Rs 2 crore will be given to the owner of the fishing vessel in which they were travelling.
On February 15, 2012, two Indian fishermen returning from a fishing expedition near Lakshadweep islands onboard fishing vessel St Antony were gunned down by two Italian marines on board oil tanker Enrica Lexie. The incident occurred around 20 nautical miles off the coast of Kerala. Shortly after the incident, the Indian Coast Guard intercepted Enrica Lexie and detained the two Italian marines— Salvatore Girone and Massimiliano Latorre.
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