Two Sri Lankan fishermen detained in Tamil Nadu

RAMANATHAPURAM: Two Sri Lankan fishermen, who reached Thondi in Ramanathapuram district of Tamil Nadu in a boat on Thursday, were quizzed by the marine police and intelligence agencies. While the duo claimed to have fled their country due to the acute economic crisis there, the police were probing if they were smugglers or offenders as they came without their families unlike the 72 refugees who had reached the Rameswaram area in the last few weeks.
The fishermen, identified as E Jeyaseelan, 27, and V Arulraj, 34, from Gurunagar in Jaffna, set sail from Sri Lanka after midnight and reached Thondi between around 5.30am.They were taken to the marine police station for questioning to ascertain the reason for their entry into India without proper documents. Officials were also trying to verify their background with the authorities in Sri Lanka.
Another reason the intelligence agencies doubted the motive of the duo is the place where they reached. While the duo reached Thondi, all the 72 refugees had preferred Rameswaram and Dhanushkodi. There have been incidents of fishermen from both Tamil Nadu and Sri Lanka being detained in and around Thondi for smuggling drugs and other valuables.
The police said they were yet to take a call on whether to send the duo to a refugee camp or to jail for illegally entering the country.