Sri Lankan court remands 17 Tamil Nadu fishermen in judicial custody till Jan 5

Seventeen Tamil Nadu fishermen arrested by Sri Lankan naval personnel were remanded in judicial custody till January 5 by a court in the island nation on Thursday.

The fishermen were produced before a magistrate at his residence in Jaffna and were remanded in custody, P Sesuraja and S Emiret, leaders of Rameswaram Fishermen's Association, said.

The fishermen, 13 of them hailing from Rameswaram and others from Jagadapattinam in Pudukottai district, were sent to a Jaffna prison later, they said.

All the fishermen were arrested near Neduntheevu yesterday, and their three boats were taken to Kanagesanthurai in Sri Lanka by the navy personnel.

Following their arrest, Tamil Nadu chief minister O Panneerselvam had urged the Centre to "act decisively" and bring back 51 fishermen languishing in the island republic.

In a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi yesterday, he sought his intervention for the immediate release of 51 fishermen, including those arrested in the latest incident, besides 114 fishing boats seized by the Lankan Navy.