ಶ್ರೀಲಂಕಾ ಅಧ್ಯಕ್ಷ ಗೊಟಬಯ ರಾಜಪಕ್ಸೆ ಪಲಾಯನ

 ಶ್ರೀಲಂಕಾ ಅಧ್ಯಕ್ಷ ಗೊಟಬಯ ರಾಜಪಕ್ಸೆ ಪಲಾಯನ

ಕೊಲಂಬೋ (ಶ್ರೀಲಂಕಾ): ಶ್ರೀಲಂಕಾ ಅಧ್ಯಕ್ಷ ಗೊಟಬಯ ರಾಜಪಕ್ಸೆ ಅವರು ತಮ್ಮ ಅಧಿಕೃತ ನಿವಾಸದಿಂದ 2022 ಜುಲೈ o9ರ ಶನಿವಾರ ಪಲಾಯನಗೈದಿದ್ದಾರೆ ಎಂದು ವರದಿಗಳು ತಿಳಿಸಿವೆ.

ಅಧ್ಯಕ್ಷರ ರಾಜೀನಾಮೆಗೆ ಒತ್ತಾಯಿಸಿ ಬೃಹತ್‌ ಸಂಖ್ಯೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ಪ್ರತಿಭಟನಕಾರರು ಗೊಟಬಯ ನಿವಾಸಕ್ಕೆ ಮುತ್ತಿಗೆ ಹಾಕಿ ಅದನ್ನು ವಶಕ್ಕೆ ಪಡೆದುಕೊಂಡಿದ್ದು ಅದಕ್ಕೆ ಮುನ್ನವೇ ಅಧ್ಯಕ್ಷರನ್ನು ಅಲ್ಲಿಂದ ಸುರಕ್ಷಿತವಾಗಿ ಹೊರಕ್ಕೆ ಕರೆದೊಯ್ಯಲಾಗಿದೆ ಎಂದು ಮೂಲಗಳು ಹೇಳಿದವು.

ಉದ್ರಿಕ್ತ ಜನಸಮುದಾಯವನ್ನು ತಡೆಯಲು ಪಡೆಗಳು ಗಾಳಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ಗುಂಡು ಹಾರಿಸಿದ್ದು, ಘಟನೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ಪೊಲೀಸರೂ ಸೇರಿದಂತೆ ಹಲವರು ಗಾಯಗೊಂಡಿದ್ದಾರೆ ಎಂದೂ ವರದಿಗಳು ಹೇಳಿವೆ.

ಮಹೀಂದಾ ರಾಜಪಕ್ಸ ಶ್ರೀಲಂಕೆಯ ಮುಂದಿನ ಪ್ರಧಾನಿ; ಅಧ್ಯಕ್ಷ ಗೋಟಬಯ ಘೋಷಣೆ

ಮಹೀಂದಾ ರಾಜಪಕ್ಸ ಶ್ರೀಲಂಕೆಯ ಮುಂದಿನ ಪ್ರಧಾನಿ; ಅಧ್ಯಕ್ಷ ಗೋಟಬಯ ಘೋಷಣೆ

ಕೊಲಂಬೋ: ಶ್ರೀಲಂಕಾದಲ್ಲಿ ಇತ್ತೀಚೆಗೆ ನಡೆದ ಅಧ್ಯಕ್ಷೀಯ ಚುನಾವಣೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ಜಯಭೇರಿ ಭಾರಿಸಿರುವ ಗೋಟಬಯ ರಾಜಪಕ್ಸ ಅವರು ನಿರೀಕ್ಷೆಯಂತೆ ಶ್ರೀಲಂಕಾದ ಮಾಜಿ ಅಧ್ಯಕ್ಷ, ಹಿರಿಯ ಅಣ್ಣ ಮಹೀಂದಾ ರಾಜಪಕ್ಸ ಅವರನ್ನು ದೇಶದ  ಪ್ರಧಾನಿಯನ್ನಾಗಿ ಆಯ್ಕೆ ಮಾಡಿದ್ದಾರೆ ಎಂದು ವರದಿಗಳು ಹೇಳಿದವು.

ಇದಕ್ಕೆ ಮುನ್ನ ಚುನಾವಣಾ ಪರಾಭವವನ್ನು ಅನುಸರಿಸಿ 2019 ನವೆಂಬರ್ 20ರ ಬುಧವಾರ ಬೆಳಗ್ಗೆ ಶ್ರೀಲಂಕಾ ಪ್ರಧಾನಿ ರಾನಿಲ್ ವಿಕ್ರಮಸಿಂಘೆ ಅವರು ರಾಜೀನಾಮೆಯನ್ನು ಪ್ರಕಟಿಸಿದ್ದರು.

ದಶಕಗಳ ಹಿಂದೆ ಶ್ರೀಲಂಕಾದ ಅಂತರ್ಯುದ್ಧ ಹಾಗೂ ತಮಿಳ್ ಟೈಗರ್ಸ್ ಬಂಡಾಯವನ್ನು ಕೊನೆಗಾಣಿಸುವ ನಿಟ್ಟಿನಲ್ಲಿ ಅಂದು ಶ್ರೀಲಂಕಾದ ಅಧ್ಯಕ್ಷರಾಗಿದ್ದ ಮಹೀಂದಾ ರಾಜಪಕ್ಸ ಅವರು ತಮ್ಮ ಕಿರಿಯ ಸಹೋದರ ಗೋಟಬಯ ಅವರನ್ನು ಸೇನೆಯ ಮುಖ್ಯ ಕಾರ್ಯದರ್ಶಿಯನ್ನಾಗಿ ನೇಮಕ ಮಾಡಿದ್ದರು.

ಆ ಬಳಿಕ ಶ್ರೀಲಂಕಾ ಸೇನೆಯು ಎಲ್‌ಟಿಟಿಇ ಮುಖ್ಯಸ್ಥ ಪ್ರಭಾಕರನ್ ಮತ್ತು ಆತನ ಉಗ್ರಗಾಮಿ ಸಂಘಟನೆಯನ್ನು ಹೊಡೆದುರುಳಿಸುವ ಮೂಲಕ ತಮಿಳು ಟೈಗರ್ಸ್ ಅಟ್ಟಹಾಸದ ಹುಟ್ಟಡಗಿಸಿತ್ತು.

ಮಹೀಂದಾ ರಾಜಪಕ್ಸ ಅವರು ಶೀಘ್ರವೇ ಪ್ರಧಾನಿಯಾಗಿ ಕಾರ್ಯನಿರ್ವಹಿಸಲಿದ್ದಾರೆ. ರಾನಿಲ್ ವಿಕ್ರಮಸಿಂಘೆ ಅವರು ಗುರುವಾರ ಬೆಳಗ್ಗೆ ಅಧಿಕಾರದಿಂದ ಅಧಿಕೃತವಾಗಿ ಕೆಳಗಿಳಿದ ನಂತರ ರಾಜಪಕ್ಸ ಅಧಿಕಾರ ಸ್ವೀಕರಿಸಲಿದ್ದಾರೆ ಎಂದು ಸರ್ಕಾರದ ವಕ್ತಾರ ವಿಜಯಾನಂದಾ ಹೆರಾಥ್ ತಿಳಿಸಿದರು.

ಕಳೆದ ವರ್ಷ ಅಕ್ಟೋಬರ್ ೨೬ರಂದು ಆಗಿನ ಅಧ್ಯಕ್ಷ ಮೈತ್ರಿಪಾಲ ಸಿರಿಸೇನಾ ಅವರು ವಿವಾದಾತ್ಮಕ ಕ್ರಮವೊಂದರಲ್ಲಿ ವಿಕ್ರಮಸಿಂಘೆ ಅವರನ್ನು ವಜಾಗೊಳಿಸಿ ಮಹಿಂದ ರಾಜಪಕ್ಸ ಅವರನು ಪ್ರಧಾನಿಯಾಗಿ ನೇಮಿಸಿದ್ದರು. ಸಿರಿಸೇನಾ ಅವರ ಕ್ರಮ ಶ್ರೀಲಂಕೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ಹಿಂದೆಂದೂ ಕಾಣದ ಸಾಂವಿಧಾನಿಕ ಬಿಕ್ಕಟ್ಟನ್ನು ಸೃಷ್ಟಿ ಮಾಡಿತ್ತು. ಸುಪ್ರೀಂಕೋರ್ಟಿನ ಎರಡು ನಿರ್ಣಾಯಕ ತೀರ್ಪುಗಳ ಬಳಿಕ ರಾಜಪಕ್ಸ ಅವರು ಡಿಸೆಂಬರ್ ತಿಂಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ಅನಿವಾರ್ಯವಾಗಿ ರಾಜೀನಾಮೆ ನೀಡಿದ್ದರು.

ಸುಪ್ರೀಂಕೋರ್ಟ್ ಆಗ ಸಿರಿಸೇನಾ ಅವರು ಸಂಸತ್ ವಿಸರ್ಜನೆ ಮಾಡಿದ್ದನ್ನು ಅಕ್ರಮ ಎಂಬುದಾಗಿ ಸುಪ್ರೀಂಕೋರ್ಟ್ ಸರ್ವಾನುಮತದ ತೀರ್ಪು ನೀಡಿತ್ತು.

ಮಹಿಂದಾ ರಾಜಪಕ್ಸ ಅವರು ೨೦೦೫ರಲ್ಲಿ ಗೆದ್ದು ಅಧಿಕಾರಕ್ಕೆ ಏರಿದ್ದರು ಮತ್ತು ದಕ್ಷಿಣ ಏಷ್ಯಾದಲ್ಲೇ ಅತ್ಯಂತ ದೀರ್ಘಕಾಲ ಆಡಳಿತ ನಡೆಸಿದ ನಾಯಕ ಎಂಬ ಹೆಗ್ಗಳಿಕೆಗೆ ಪಾತ್ರರಾಗಿದ್ದರು. ೧೯೭೦ರಲ್ಲಿ ಅವರು ರಾಷ್ಟ್ರದ ಅತ್ಯಂತ ಕಿರಿಯ ಸಂಸದ ಎಂಬ ಕೀರ್ತಿಗೂ ಪಾತ್ರರಾಗಿದ್ದರು. ಆಗ ಅವರ ವಯಸ್ಸು ಕೇವಲ ೨೪ ವರ್ಷ.

ರಾಜಪಕ್ಸ ಸಹೋದರರು ರಾಷ್ಟ್ರದ ಅಂತರ್ಯುದ್ಧದ ಸಮಯದಲ್ಲಿ ನಿರ್ಣಾಯಕ ಪಾತ್ರ ವಹಿಸಿ, ಮೂರು ದಶಕಗಳ ಅಂತರ್ಯುದ್ಧಕ್ಕೆ  ತೆರೆ ಎಳೆದಿದ್ದರು. ಜೊತೆಗೇ ಲಿಬರೇಷನ್ ಟೈಗರ್ಸ್ ಆಫ್ ತಮಿಳು ಈಳಂ (ಎಲ್‌ಟಿಟಿಇ) ಅಟ್ಟಹಾಸವನ್ನು ಕೊನೆಗೊಳಿಸಿದ್ದರು.

ಆಡಳಿತಾರೂಢ ಪಕ್ಷದ ಅಭ್ಯರ್ಥಿ ವಿಕ್ರಮಸಿಂಘೆ ಅವರ ಸಹಾಯಕ ಸಾಯಿಜಿತ್ ಪ್ರೇಮದಾಸ ಅವರು ಗೊಟಬಯ ರಾಜಪಕ್ಸ ಅವರ ಎದುರು ಅಧ್ಯಕ್ಷೀಯ ಚುನಾವಣೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ಪರಾಭವಗೊಂಡ ಕೆಲವುದಿನಗಳ ಬಳಿಕ ವಿಕ್ರಮಸಿಂಘೆ ಅವರು ಬುಧವಾರ ಬೆಳಗ್ಗೆ ಪ್ರಧಾನಿ ಹುದ್ದೆಗೆ ತಮ್ಮ ರಾಜೀನಾಮೆಯನ್ನು ಪ್ರಕಟಿಸಿದ್ದರು.

ಸಿಂಹಳ ಭಾಷೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ನೀಡಿದ ವಿಶೇಷ ಹೇಳಿಕೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ಪ್ರಧಾನಿಯವರು ತಾವು ಮಂಗಳವಾರ ಅಧ್ಯಕ್ಷ ಗೊಟಬಯ ರಾಜಪಕ್ಸ ಅವರನ್ನು ಭೇಟಿ ಮಾಡಿ ಶ್ರೀಲಂಕೆಯ ಭವಿಷ್ಯದ ಸಂಸತ್ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ಚರ್ಚಿಸಿರುವುದಾಗಿ ತಿಳಿಸಿರುವುದಾಗಿಯೂ ಕೊಲಂಬೋ ಗಜೆಟ್ ಸುದ್ದಿ ಪತ್ರಿಕೆ ವರದಿ ಮಾಡಿತು.

ತಮ್ಮ ಸರ್ಕಾರವು ಈಗಲೂ ಸಂಸತ್ತಿನಲ್ಲಿ ಬಹುಮತ ಹೊಂದಿದ್ದರೂ ಅಧ್ಯಕ್ಷೀಯ ಚುನಾವಣೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ಜನತೆಯು ರಾಜಪಕ್ಸ ಅವರಿಗೆ ನೀಡಿರುವ ಜನಾದೇಶಕ್ಕೆ ಗೌರವ ಕೊಟ್ಟು ಅಧಿಕಾರದಿಂದ ಇಳಿಯಲು ನಿರ್ಧರಿಸಿರುವುದಾಗಿ ವಿಕ್ರಮಸಿಂಘೆ ತಿಳಿಸಿದರು.

‘ನೂತನ ಅಧ್ಯಕ್ಷರಿಗೆ ಹೊಸ ಸರ್ಕಾರ ರಚನೆಗೆ ಅನುಕೂಲವಾಗುವಂತೆ ಮಾಡಲು ನಾನು ಅಧಿಕಾರದಿಂದ ಕೆಳಗಿಳಿಯುವೆ. ನಾನು ಅಧಿಕೃತವಾಗಿ ನನ್ನ ನಿರ್ಧಾರವನ್ನು ಅವರಿಗೆ ನಾಳೆ ತಿಳಿಸುವೆ ಎಂದು ವಿಕ್ರಮಸಿಂಘೆ ಹೇಳಿದ್ದರು. ವಿಕ್ರಮಸಿಂಘೆ ಅವರು ೧೯೯೪ರಿಂದ ಯುನೈಟೆಡ್ ನ್ಯಾಷನಲ್ ಪಾರ್ಟಿ (ಯುಎನ್‌ಪಿ) ನಾಯಕರಾಗಿದ್ದು ಶ್ರೀಲಂಕಾದ ಪ್ರಧಾನಿಯಾಗಿ ಒಟ್ಟು ಮೂರು ಅವಧಿಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ಸೇವೆ ಸಲ್ಲಿಸಿದ್ದರು.

Massive Terror Attack in Srilanka: Above 160 killed, 450 injured

Massive Terror Attack in Srilanka: Above 160 killed, 450 injured

Colombo: Six explosions ripped through Sri Lanka’s churches and popular hotels on Sunday, 21^st April 2019 morning, with authorities saying 160 people were feared dead.

Worshippers were targeted at the Kochikade, St Sebastian and Batticaloa churches during Easter mass. The other locations are Hotel Shangri La, Cinnamon Grand and Kingsbury hotel.

There were initial reports of at least 80 people injured in the capital but sources said about 450 injured people had been brought to hospitals.

A string of blasts hit high-end hotels and churches in Sri Lanka on Sunday, killing at least 42 and injuring hundreds of people as worshippers attended Easter services.


The first explosions were reported at St Anthony’s Church in Colombo and St Sebastian’s in the town of Negombo just outside the capital.


At least 160 people injured in the St Anthony’s blast had been admitted to the Colombo National Hospital by mid-morning, an official told AFP.


“A bomb attack to our church, please come and help if your family members are there,” read a post in English on the Facebook page of the St Sebastian’s Church at Katuwapitiya in Negombo.


Shortly after those blasts were reported, police confirmed three hotels in the capital had also been hit, along with a church in the town of Batticalao, in the east of the country.


An official at the Batticaloa hospital told AFP more than 300 people had been admitted with injuries following the blast there.


Photos circulating on social media showed the roof of one church had been almost blown off in the blast.


The floor was littered with a mixture of roof tiles, splintered wood and blood.


Several people could be seen covered in blood, with some trying to help those with more serious injuries.


The images could not immediately be verified.


Only around six percent of mainly Buddhist Sri Lanka is Catholic, but the religion is seen as a unifying force because it includes people from both the Tamil and majority Sinhalese ethnic groups.

External affairs minister Sushma Swaraj said I she was in touch with Indian High Commissioner in Colombo and India was keeping a close watch on the situation. The High Commission said Indian citizens in need of assistance or help and for seeking clarification could call the following numbers: +94777903082 +94112422788 +94112422789.

Mahinda Rajapaksa Resigns at last

Mahinda Rajapaksa Resigns at last

Colombo: Mahinda Rajapaksa, who was appointed as Sri Lanka's Prime Minister by President Maithripala Sirisena in a controversial move, resigned Saturday, 15^th December 2018, as two crucial Supreme Court decisions made the embattled former strongman's efforts to cling to premiership untenable.

Rajapaksa informed the lawmakers of United People's Freedom Alliance (UPFA) that he has resigned from the post, MP Shehan Semasinghe told reporters.

Rajapaksa was appointed as the prime minister on October 26 by President Sirisena in a controversial move after sacking Ranil Wickremesinghe, which plunged the country into an unprecedented constitutional crisis.

The Supreme Court on Friday refused to stay a court order restraining Rajapaksa, 73, from holding the office of Prime Minister until it fully heard the case next month.
The apex court on Thursday unanimously declared that the dissolution of Parliament by Sirisena was "illegal".

Pro-Rajapaksa lawmaker, Lakshman Yapa Abeywardena, had told reporters that Rajapaksa decided in a meeting on Friday with President Sirisena to resign to allow the President to appoint a new government.

Wickremesinghe is expected to take oath as Sri Lanka's Prime Minister on Sunday.

President Maithripala Sirisena has reportedly agreed to reinstate ousted Prime Minister Wickremesinghe in the post after a discussion with him over the phone on Friday.

Rajapakse voted out in Sri Lanka Parliament

Rajapakse voted out in Sri Lanka Parliament

Colombo: Sri Lanka’s parliament passed a motion of no-confidence in the controversially appointed government of Mahinda Rajapakse on Wednesday, 14^th November 2018, a day after the Supreme Court overturned a presidential decree dissolving the legislature.


Speaker Karu Jayasuriya ruled that a majority of the 225-member assembly supported a no-confidence motion against Rajapakse who was made prime minister on October 26 in place of Ranil Wickremesinghe.


The result does not automatically mean that Wickremesinghe, whose party is the biggest in parliament, has won the constitutional showdown. President Maithripala Sirisena retains the power to choose the next prime minister.


The Parliament convened for the first time since October 27, when President Sirisena suspended the legislature after firing Wickremesinghe and his cabinet in a power struggle in a development that plunged the island nation into crisis.


On Wednesday, the Supreme Court suspended a proclamation issued by Sirisena on Friday sacking the legislature and calling for elections on January 5. The court also ordered the Elections Commission to halt preparations for the January 5 vote.


Rajapaksa, who ruled Lanka for a nearly decade from 2005, was unexpectedly defeated by his deputy Sirisena in the presidential election held in January 2015 with the support from Wickremesinghe’s UNP.


However, the power-sharing arrangement between Sirisena and Wickremesinghe became increasingly tenuous on several policy matters, especially on issues like the economy and security. And subsequently, Sirisena abruptly ousted Wickremesinghe and replaced him with Rajapaksa.

Sri Lanka's President Sirisena dissolve parliament

Colombo: President Maithripala Sirisena has dissolved parliament in the midnight of Friday, 9^th November 2018, amid a political crisis following his attempt to replace Sri Lanka's prime minister.

The official notification, which took effect at midnight on Friday (17:30 GMT), would trigger a general election on 5 January.


However, it could be challenged in the Supreme Court.


The sacked prime minister's party says the president does not have the power to take such action.


Last month, President Sirisena named former strongman leader Mahinda Rajapaksa as the new prime minister after sacking Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and his cabinet and suspending parliament.


But Mr Wickremesinghe has refused to leave, saying his sacking was illegitimate.
An MP from Mr Wickremesinghe's United National Party (UNP) said the move to dissolve parliament was "illegal" and said he believed it would be rejected.


"We are requesting the election commission to solve this issue peacefully without creating a bloodbath in the country," Ajith Perera told the news channel.


According to reports, the Sirisena-Rajapaksa camp are calling a snap election because they did not have enough support in parliament for their new government.


The UNP meanwhile would prefer a parliamentary vote to a national election at this time, reports said.

What has led to this?

Mr Sirisena, the president, and Mr Wickremesinghe, the sacked prime minister, joined forces in the 2015 election to defeat the then long-time president, Mr Rajapaksa.


But their uneasy coalition has since fractured and Mr Sirisena announced he was sacking the PM and replacing him with Mr Rajapaksa.


The pair had reportedly clashed in cabinet recently over government plans to lease a port to India.

The sacking left the country with two people claiming to run the government. The ousted PM has refused to leave his residence, Temple Trees, arguing that the president's move is unconstitutional and calling for parliament to be convened quickly so a vote can take place.


Meanwhile, Mr Rajapaksa has sworn in a new cabinet and has also taken the post of finance minister. Four MPs aligned with Mr Wickremesinghe were given ministerial portfolios in a bid to win their support in parliament.


The crisis led to violence last month, when the bodyguard of the sacked oil minister fired at a crowd of protesters outside his office.


Regional rivals are watching events closely - China has congratulated Mr Rajapaksa, while India, the EU and US have called for the constitution to be respected.

Who is Rajapaksa?

Mahinda Rajapaksa is a popular but controversial figure. As president, he ended the decades-long civil war in 2009, but faced criticism for the means by which he achieved victory - many thousands of Tamil civilians are thought to have been killed by government forces in the final months of the fighting.


The military has always denied this, but it has remained a bitterly contentious issue and been the subject of intense scrutiny.

ICHR not to study nature of ‘Ram Setu’ structures

ICHR not to study nature of ‘Ram Setu’ structures

New Delhi:  The Indian Council of Historical Research (ICHR) will not conduct or fund any study to determine whether the Ram Setu was a man-made or a natural structure, its newly-appointed chairperson Arvind Jamkhedkar has said, on Sunday, 8^th April 2018 dismissing the project earlier announced by the HRD body.

The Council on March24, 2017 said it would conduct an underwater exploration study to see whether the Ram Setu or Adam’s Bridge was a natural or an artificial phenomenon.

“There was a proposal by one historian to take up such a project and the council members are against supporting it. In fact, they are very angry about it. We are not going to conduct any such study or even fund one,” Mr. Jamkhedkar told PTI. Mr. Jamkhedkar assumed charge of the ICHR on March 5, 2018.

“It is not the work of historians to carry out excavations and work like that. For that, there are apt agencies such as the Archaeological Survey of India. The maximum the ICHR can do is to recommend it to the agency concerned,” he said in an interview.

His predecessor, Y. Sudershan Rao, had announced that “theoretical training” under a pilot project would begin and exploration would be conducted later. “One of the major projects that we are going to initiate is the Ram Setu pilot project which will seek to ascertain or find out if these structures were the results of natural phenomenon or man-made,” Mr. Rao had said.

Indian mythology states that the Ram Setu, between what is now India and Sri Lanka, was built by an army of monkeys for Lord Rama and his warriors to cross over to Lanka.
Mr. Rao, contacted by PTI, did not comment on the project being scrapped. “I had initiated the project but by the time we could do any work on it, my term was over,” he said.

The bridge has been at the centre of a controversy, especially since the Sethusamudram shipping canal project was mooted by the UPA government. The project triggered widespread protests, with a section of people holding that it would destroy the Ram Setu.

3,000 TN fishermen chased away by Lankan Navy

3,000 TN fishermen chased away by Lankan Navy

Rameswaram (TN):  More than 3,000 fishermen from Tamil Nadu, who had put out to sea in 460 mechanised boats, were today chased away by the Sri Lankan Navy when they were allegedly fishing near Katchatheevu islet, Fisheries Department officials here said.

The Lankan navy personnel also warned the fishermen from Rameswaram not to poach fish near Katchatheevu and snapped the nets of 10 boats, Assistant Director of Fisheries A Manikandan said.

Later, the navy personnel asked the fishermen to take back the snapped nets and warned them not to venture near the islet, he added.

Seven Tamil Nadu fishermen were arrested on February 8 by the Lankan navy, which also snapped the fishing nets of at least 50 vessels while they were allegedly fishing near Katchatheevu islet.

On February 6, more than 1,500 Tamil Nadu fishermen were chased away by the Sri Lankan Navy while they were allegedly fishing close to Katchatheevu islet.

Do you know the facts about Katchatheevu  islet?

Katchatheevu (Tamil: கச்சத்தீவு, translit. Kaccattīvu, Sinhalese: කච්චතීවු, translit. kaccatīvu) is an uninhabited island administered by Sri Lanka and was a disputed territory claimed by India until 1976. The island is located between Neduntheevu, Sri Lanka and Rameswaram, India and has been traditionally used by both Sri Lankan Tamil and Tamil Nadu fishermen.
The island originated from a volcanic eruption that occurred in the 14th century. In 1974 India recognized Sri Lankan ownership of the island on a conditional agreement.

History: The island was earlier part of the Ramnad Kingdom. Later on with the British rule on the Indian subcontinent was the island part of the Madras Presidency.

Ownership of the island was controversial up until 1974 as during British Rule the island was administered by both countries. India recognized Sri Lankan equal ownership. The legality of the transfer was challenged in the Indian Supreme Court since the recognizing was not ratified by the Indian parliament.This recognition of an island that is culturally important to fishermen of Tamil Nadu state in India has led to some agitations by Tamil Nadu politicians that it should be claimed to Indian sovereignty. The island is also important for fishing grounds used by fishers from both countries.The Indo-Sri Lankan agreement allows Indian fishermen to fish around Katchatheevu and to dry their nets on the island. As part of the Sri Lankan civil war, this arrangement led to many difficulties with the Sri Lankan Navy that is deployed to prevent smuggling of weapons by the rebel group LTTE. The island has a Catholic shrine that attracts devotees from both countries.
The main problem continues to grow as more fisherman move into the Sri Lankan sea area for illegal poaching. In 2010 the Sri Lankan government issued a notice to the Tamil Nadu government saying the Indian court cannot nullify the 1974 agreement.
In June 2011 the new Tamil Nadu government led by Jayalalithaa filed a petition in the Supreme Court seeking the declaration of the 1974 and 1976 agreements between India and Sri Lanka on ceding of Katchatheevu to Sri Lanka as unconstitutional. The court ruled in the Berubari case that the cession of Indian territory to another country had to be ratified by parliament through amendment of the Constitution.
However, the Indian government has stated that "No territory belonging to India was ceded nor sovereignty relinquished since the area was in dispute and had never been demarcated" and that the dispute on the status of the island was settled in 1974 by an agreement, and both countries took into account historical evidence and legal aspects.
St. Antony's shrine is one of a kind which shares the borders of both countries India and Sri Lanka, and declared holy place by both Governments.
There stands the only religious structure, St. Antony's Catholic Shrine which holds 100+ year old traditions, and was built by an Indian Catholic (Tamilian) called Srinivasa Padaiyachi. No one is required to possess an Indian passport or Sri Lankan visa for visiting Kachchatheevu.
The church festival runs for three days. The priests from both India and Sri Lanka conduct the mass and car procession. As many as 35 country boats and 106 mechanized boats ferry the pilgrims, mostly from Rameswaram; there is not a drop of drinking water on the island, and the only structure is a church named after St. Antony, patron-saint of seafarers, to whom the feast is dedicated. It was put up by a prosperous fisherman in the early 20th century.