Tamil Nadu CM J Jayalalithaa says India should not recognize IMBL with Sri Lanka

CHENNAI: The long-standing fishermen issue with Sri Lanka came to a head on Tuesday with chief minister J Jayalalithaa stating that India should not recognize the International Maritime Boundary Line (IMBL) with the Island nation as a settled question as the constitutionality of the 1974 and 1976 agreements had been challenged.

In a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in which she sought his help for the release of a fresh batch of TN fishermen by the Sri Lankan navy, Jayalalithaa said, "I have pointed out in my previous letters, a permanent solution to the fishermen issue lies only in retrieval of the Katchatheevu island, to which India has a strong legal and historical claim".

The unconstitutional Indo-Sri Lankan Agreements of 1974 and 1976 should be nullified and the traditional rights of Tamil Nadu fishermen to fish in the Palk Bay should be restored, Jayalalithaa said.

"The Government of India should not treat the IMBL with Sri Lanka as a settled question as the constitutionality of the 1974 and 1976 agreements have been challenged on extremely valid and legal grounds by me in my personal capacity and also by the Government of Tamil Nadu in the Supreme Court of India," the chief minister said.

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