Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay used his maiden official visit to New Delhi this week to raise the continued arrest of Tamil Nadu fishermen by the Sri Lanka Navy directly with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, The Island reported, citing Tamil Guardian.
Vijay met Modi at the Prime Minister’s Office for what was officially described as a courtesy call, but used the meeting to press several Tamil Nadu concerns, including the Cauvery river dispute and the status of Tamil cultural traditions at official state functions. He also held talks with Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman during the trip.
The Chief Minister told Modi that 12 separate incidents involving the arrest of Tamil Nadu fishermen had taken place in 2026 alone. According to the figures presented, 58 fishermen are currently in Sri Lankan detention while 266 fishing boats remain in Sri Lankan custody. Vijay urged the Indian government to pressure Colombo for the immediate release of both the detained men and their impounded vessels.
The intervention escalates the issue from state-level diplomacy to a head-of-government representation. Vijay had earlier written to External Affairs Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar on May 12 over six fishermen arrested off Mandapam, and the issue had remained a recurring source of tension between Tamil Nadu and New Delhi since his election win and oath-taking on May 10.
The fishermen issue is a long-standing irritant in India-Sri Lanka relations, particularly amongst coastal communities in Ramanathapuram and Nagapattinam districts. The Sri Lanka Navy maintains it arrests Indian vessels only when they cross the International Maritime Boundary Line, and recent enforcement has included four fishermen detained in Mannar over a fishing ban, 10 arrested on April 9 and 12 detained off Jaffna on April 12. Fisheries Minister Ramalingam Chandrasekar has separately argued that bottom-trawling by Indian vessels is the underlying cause of the recurring confrontations.
Source: The Island.
