RAMESWARAM (PTI): Six Indian fishermen were seriously injured when the Sri Lankan navy fired at three Indian fishing boats in the sea off Rameswaram coast on Friday fishermen   association sources here said on Saturday.

They said two of the injured whose boat had been hijacked at gun point to the Sri Lankan territorial waters by the islands navy had managed to escape by jumping from the boat. The fishermen had also abandoned their boat.

 Police later said the Sri Lankan navy had fired at the boat of a person belonging to Naalam Theedai an island in Indian waters seriously injuring three of its occupants and damaging the fishing nets while the other occupants of the boat had escaped the injured had been brought to Rameswaram and admitted to hospital.

 Police said the Lankan navy also ordered fishermen on board a motorboat near Irandasn Theedai near here to proceed along with them and fired at them on reaching Lankan territorial waters while two fishermen received bullet injuries two had escaped. The diesel tank of the boat caught fire in the incident but the fishermen put out the flame immediately.

IN another incident a fisherman was injured when Sri Lankan navy fired at a boat in the sea off Iran dam Theedai.

Article extracted from this publication >> July 24, 1992