PM @narendramodi should urge the Sri Lankan govt to release 5 #TNfishermen and 134 boats during his visit to SL for #BuddhaPurnima

DMK working president M.K. Stalin appealed directly to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on May 5, 2017, demanding urgent diplomatic intervention ahead of his upcoming visit to Sri Lanka for Buddha Purnima. Stalin urged the Prime Minister to use the high-level visit to secure the immediate release of five Tamil Nadu fishermen and 134 seized mechanized boats currently held in Sri Lankan custody. He emphasized that resolving the recurring maritime crisis must be treated as a top national priority.

Stalin highlighted the acute economic distress facing coastal families whose primary livelihood assets remained impounded across the Palk Strait. Sri Lankan authorities continued to detain traditional fishermen and confiscate their expensive trawlers, plunging entire coastal hamlets into financial despair. The opposition leader maintained that periodic diplomatic talks had failed to deliver lasting protections, leaving Tamil Nadu fishermen vulnerable to repeated arrests and harassment while operating in traditional fishing zones.

Stalin demanded that the Union government adopt a firm diplomatic posture during bilateral exchanges in Colombo. The livelihoods of coastal citizens, he insisted, cannot be relegated to secondary status during official celebrations. He called for a permanent bilateral solution to safeguard fishing rights and protect Tamil coastal communities.