Sri Lankan court fines 12 Rameswaram fishermen, sentences two to 18 months imprisonment with fine

MADURAI: A Sri Lankan court on Wednesday released 12 Rameswaram fishermen with a penalty of LKR 50,000 each while two others were sentenced to 18 months of imprisonment.
The 14 fishermen and their two mechanised trawlers were detained by the Sri Lankan navy on Feb 9.
The detained fishermen were booked on charges of trespassing, poaching and using banned fishing gear in Sri Lankan waters and were lodged in a Vavuniya prison after a court remanded them in judicial custody.
As their judicial remand expired on Wednesday, the fishermen were produced before a Kilinochi court. The magistrate who heard the case released 12 fishermen with a fine of LKR 50,000 (around Rs 14,632) each.
Boat owner John Bose was fined LKR 1.20 crore (around Rs 35 lakh) and sentenced to 18 months in prison. A boat master (driver) was sentenced to 18 months with a fine of LKR 50,000. Collectively, the court imposed a penalty of LKR 2.26 crore (around Rs 66 lakh) on the 14 fishermen.
The 12 fishermen would be freed from prison upon paying the penalty of LKR 50,000 each, said sources in the Indian consulate at Jaffna.