Three Sri Lankan fishing boats attacked by Indian navy

Intercepted in international waters and searched on suspicion of drug trafficking. Two boats returned on 1 February with 12 fishermen, four of whom were injured. Family members are calling for a formal investigation, while Colombo's fisheries minister condemns the action.

Colombo (AsiaNews) - Three Sri Lankan fishing boats operating in international waters were attacked by the Indian navy. Two of them returned to the Indian Ocean island country on Monday 1 February. The fishermen told the media that they had been severely assaulted. Indian sailors searched the Sri Lankan fishermen's boats, questioning them about the presence of drugs.

At the port of Vellamankaraya, the moment the fishermen disembarked was very heated, with other fishermen and relatives staging a protest against the action. The relatives of the attacked fishermen expressed their disappointment to the Indian Navy and made strong accusations.

At the time of the Indian Navy attack, 12 fishermen from these two fishing boats, the Dinithi Duwa I and the Dinithi Duwa II, were at work. According to the fishermen who arrived in Sri Lanka, the third vessel, the Sandunputha, also attacked by the Indian Navy, informed Colombo via radio messages that there were three fishermen on board in critical condition. Relatives have asked the Sri Lankan government to request a formal investigation from India.

The Minister of Fisheries condemned the Indian Coast Guard's attack on the Sinhalese fishermen. ‘Strong objections have been raised against the attack carried out by Indian Coast Guard officers against a group of Sri Lankan fishermen on the basis of false accusations,’ said Ramalingam Chandrasekar. The minister pointed out that the Indian High Commission in Colombo had also been informed of the attack.

The Sri Lankan Navy admitted four fishermen from these vessels to Galle General Hospital in the early hours of 31 January 2026. In addition, arrangements were made to admit three fishermen from the two vessels that arrived on 1 February to hospital. According to the fishermen's relatives, the Dinithi Duwa I and II were attacked in Sri Lankan waters while returning home on the 29th after working in international waters for more than a month.

The fishing vessel Sandunputha was reportedly attacked on the afternoon of 30 January in international waters near Diogesiya Island. Commenting on the incident, the president of the Sri Lanka Long Distance Fishing Vessel Owners Association, Tyrone Mendis, said that due to this situation, more than 2,000 Sri Lankan fishing vessels operating in international waters are not working and are issuing warning signals.

Although the four injured fishermen from the Dinithi Duwa I and II were hospitalised, the fishermen from the Sandunputha fishing vessel could not be treated promptly because it would take another five days for the vessel to reach Sri Lanka. The owner of the Sandunputha, Sandun Chamara, said that three fishermen were injured, one with blood coming from his ear and nose; another was brutally beaten and had ice applied to his back.