Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin on Monday wrote to Union Minister of External Affairs S. Jaishankar to seek a waiver of the penalty imposed by the Maldives government on the 12 fishermen from Tamil Nadu in its custody and secure their release.
In his letter, he emphasised that the fishermen and their families depended only on their catch for their livelihoods and the exorbitant fine was well beyond their means. “It threatens to permanently impoverish them and their families,” the Chief Minister contended in his letter. A copy of the letter was shared with the media.
Mr. Stalin asked the Union Minister to seek a waiver of the imposed penalty of ₹2.25 crore (MVR 42,00,000) and secure their release along with their fishing vessel. “I believe that your timely intervention can bring relief to these fishermen and their families, who are currently facing an extremely difficult situation,” he added.
