Aishwarya Rathore-
In a new development in the Enrica Lexie case, seven fishermen who were onboard the fishing boat attacked by Italian Marines in the 2012 sea-firing incident have approached the Supreme Court for compensation of Rupees 2 crores which was deposited by the Republic of Italy in the name of the boat’s owner.
The fresh application has been filed on behalf of seven people who were among the twelve fishermen onboard the ‘St.Antony’ boat when it was attacked by Italian Marines with snipers in February 2012 off the coast of Kerala. According to the petitioners, they were also injured in the incident and are entitled to compensation.
The applicants are asking for a stay on the payment of the compensation until their claims are resolved.
The application was filed on July 7 in response to the Supreme Court’s Order quashing criminal proceedings in India against two Italian Marines, Massimilano Latorre and Salvatore Girone, in connection with a 2012 sea-firing incident that killed two Indian fishermen.
The Supreme Court quashed the criminal proceedings accepting the compensation of Rupees 10 crores deposited by the Republic of Italy.
The Bench had ordered that a sum of Rs. 10 crores be transferred to the High Court of Kerala from the Registry Supreme Court, with Rs. 4 crores going to the heirs of the two fishermen killed in the incident and Rs. 2 crores going to the owner of the St. Antony boat.
Further, the Court had requested that the Chief Justice of the Kerala High Court nominate a Judge to issue an appropriate order of disbursement of the amount to be paid to the heirs of each deceased (4 crores each) in order to protect the heirs’ interests.
The Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Seas ruled in July of last year that India was entitled to compensation from Italy for the death of an Indian fisherman.
The International Tribunal, on the other hand, ruled that India lacked the authority to bring criminal charges against the Marines as they were protected by sovereign immunity.
Following that, the Centre had informed the Supreme Court that it was accepting the award of the Permanent Court of Arbitration and sought to quash the pending cases against the Marines.