Tamil Nadu passes resolution urging Centre to retrieve Katchatheevu island from Sri Lanka

The Tamil Nadu Assembly on Wednesday unanimously passed a resolution urging the Centre to retrieve the Katchatheevu island from Sri Lanka.

Katchatheevu is a small uninhabited island in the Palk Strait between India and Sri Lanka. Both countries have staked claim on it since at least 1921.

“The tears shed by Indian fishermen from Tamil Nadu, and the anguish they have endured over the years, cannot be captured in words,” Chief Minister MK Stalin said in a post on X. “The sea, their source of livelihood, has become a place of fear and uncertainty due to repeated attacks by the Sri Lankan Navy.”

The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam leader said the resolution was passed “to safeguard our historical rights, livelihoods, and access to traditional fishing grounds”.

The resolution held that the island’s retrieval “is the only permanent solution to protect the traditional fishing rights of Tamil Nadu fishermen and to mitigate the sufferings faced by them due to the Sri Lankan Navy,” The Hindu reported.

Stalin also urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is scheduled to visit Sri Lanka this week, to seek the release of Indian fishermen who have been detained by Colombo.

Modi is expected to visit Sri Lanka from April 4 to 6, at the invitation of President Anura Kumara Dissanayake.

Hon’ble PM @narendramodi,
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