The Supreme Court on August 19 stayed disbursement of Rs 2 crore compensation earmarked for the owner of the fishing vessel 'St Antony', in which two fishermen were killed by Italian marines in 2012. The stay was based on a plea filed by nine survivor fishermen, who were on the boat, stating that they too, are eligible for compensation. On June 15, the top court had brought the curtains down on the nine-year old pending criminal proceedings in India against two Italian marines, Massimilano Latorre and Salvatore Girone, who were accused of killing the two fishermen, after Rs 10 crore in compensation was paid by Italy to the heirs of the deceased and the boat owner. Of the total amount, Rs 4 crore each has been earmarked for the families of two deceased fishermen, and Rs 2 crore for the owner of the boat.
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta suggested that the fishermen's plea can be sent to the Kerala High Court which is entrusted with the task of disbursing the compensation, to which the bench said a notice to vessel owner Freddy was necessary as any modification in the order will reduce his share. The notice of this application be given to the boat owner and in the meantime, we request the Kerala High Court not to disburse any amount to the boat owner in terms of the June 15, 2021 order, Justices Indira Banerjee and V Ramasubramanin said.
Lawyer Manish Dembla, appearing for the fishermen, said Freddy (owner) and heirs of the two deceased have been given compensation. Freddy, for whom Rs 2 crore out of total Rs 10 crore compensation has been earmarked, was also paid Rs 17 lakh ex-gratia earlier for the damage to the vessel which was worth Rs 10 lakh only, Dembla argued. Urging the top court to modify its June 15 order by providing some compensation to the surviving fishermen, Dembla said that one of the four grounds for seeking damages in the case was injuries, including mental, which were sustained by his clients.
Kerala government has now said no compensation will be given to us on account of the latest order of the Supreme Court and we just want that the Rs 2 crore compensation, payable to the boat owner, be stayed, he said. The bench said the owner of the fishing vessel should be made party instead of the Union government as only he can oppose this plea. Referring to the earlier order, the bench said there was nothing for the boat crew and the amount was to be paid to the heirs of the deceased and the vessel owner.
Now if we modify this, the amount for other beneficiaries will go down. We can issue notice to the boat owner and decide to modify the order, the bench said, adding that it may request the Kerala High Court to decide it, but it can be done only after hearing the owner of the fishing vessel.
In the fresh plea, the survivor fishermen said they were also injured in the incident and hence, entitled for the compensation. They have sought a stay on the disbursement till their claims are determined. The top court had also said earlier that as per the international arbitral award accepted by India, Italy shall resume further investigation in the case against the two marines and quashed the FIR, registered at Coastal Police Station of Neendakara, Kollam in Kerala and re-registered by NIA in 2013, and all the proceedings in the case.
It had closed the case after the Arbitral Tribunal constituted under Annex VII of UNCLOS delivered its award on May 21, 2020 under which Italy agreed to pay Rs 10 crore compensation, over the ex-gratia amount already paid. Meanwhile, the Supreme Court stated that the heirs of the deceased fishermen and the owner of the boat have agreed to accept the award.
In February 2012, India had accused the two marines on board the MV Enrica Lexie, an Italian flagged oil tanker, of killing two Indian fishermen who were on a fishing vessel in India's Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). Latorre, who had suffered a brain stroke on August 31, 2014, was first granted bail and allowed by the apex court on September 12, 2014 to go to Italy for four months and after that, extensions have been granted to him. In Italy, Latorre underwent a heart surgery after which the top court granted him extension of his stay in his native country. The complaint against the marines was lodged by Freddy on whose vessel two fishermen were killed when marines opened fire on them under the misconception that they were pirates.