Italian marine case: India has jurisdiction, says Jaitley

Ajay Banerjee

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, May 3

A day after UN Permanent Court of Arbitration at The Hague asked India to allow an incarcerated Italian Marine to go back home pending a case over jurisdiction issues, Minister for Finance Arun Jaitley gave statement in Lok Sabha saying India had jurisdiction over the case.

In February 2012 two Kerala fishermen had lost their lives after two Italian marines  — Massimiliano Latorre and Salvatore Girone  — posted on a merchant vessel had fired at the fishing vessel off the Kerala coast suspecting them to be pirates.

Italy has been arguing that the case should not be heard in India as the incident happened in international waters. However, India has remained confident that the issue of jurisdiction will be determined in their favour.

Jaitley said even if the detained Italian marine returns home as per the UN tribunal’s orders, he would remain under the Supreme Court’s jurisdiction.

" The Italian court has confirmed that the marine — Salvatore Girone — will submit his passport to the Italian government and the court will keep our Supreme Court apprised of the progress they have made every three months."

"The government’s position is clear: India has jurisdiction in this case and will pursue the case on behalf of the victims rigorously," Jaitley said.

The Congress protested against Jaitley’s stand allowing the release of Salvatore Girone and staged walk from the House out while terming the release a “fixed match”.

While both the marines were granted bail, Girone has been detained at the Italian embassy in New Delhi since the past four years and Latorre was sent to Italy on bail after he suffered a stroke in 2014.

Jaitley, who at the start of the statement said he was speaking on behalf of his colleague External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, said the Supreme Court must approve the return of an Italian marine to his country while international arbitration plays out in the case accusing him and another marine of fatally shooting two Indian fishermen in 2012.

Instead, it says the tribunal's decision affirms the Indian court's authority in the case and asks both countries to approach the court about Girone's bail terms.

Jaitley’s comment comes a day after an international tribunal asked New Delhi and Rome to approach the Supreme Court of India to relax the bail conditions of an Italian marine accused of killing two Indian fishermen in 2012.