3 Pak fishermen killed off Gujarat

Three Pakistani fishermen were killed when Indian Navy personnel opened fire at them after naval vessels intercepted their boat in the Arabi...

Three Pakistani fishermen were killed when Indian Navy personnel opened fire at them after naval vessels intercepted their boat in the Arabian Sea off Jamnagar in Gujarat. One fisherman was injured in the firing.

Two Navy ships were on routine passage from Jahkhau to Kori Creek this afternoon when they spotted the boat. Navymen warned them repeatedly and fired flares but the fishermen steered the boat away. The Navy spokesperson said the officers had to open fire around 3.30 am as the boat did not stop.

He said the boat was intercepted approximately 10 nautical miles off the Gujarat coast in the Rann of Kutch. It was only then that the personnel found it was from Pakistan, he said.

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In a complaint, Lt Commander Karthik Murthi of the Navy said the naval boats Fact-80 and Fact-81 fired at the Pakistani boat Shahensh only when it tried to escape.

Five Pakistani fishermen have been arrested and are now in the custody of the Gujarat police. The injured fisherman is being treated at a hospital in Rajkot, district SP (Jamnagar) Manoj Shashidhar said in Ahmedabad.

The naval spokesperson said the boat was seized but only the master of the vessel among the crew of six had valid papers. One of the crew members was killed when the warning shots were fired while the other two, who were severely injured, died later, the spokesperson said.

The boat was brought to Okha, the nearest harbour, today and was handed over to civil authorities through the Coast Guard. ‘‘Further investigation is on,’’ he said.

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