Kochi, March 28 (IANS) The Kerala government Wednesday informed the high court that a decision on whether Italian ship Enrica Lexie, from which marines had opened fire killing two Indian fishermen, can be allowed to sail depends on the forensic report of the firearms seized from the ship.
Counsel for the government said that a decision can be taken only after the forensic report comes in two days’ time.
‘Once the report comes, then the state government will be in a position to take a decision whether the ship can be allowed to leave,’ said the counsel.
Meanwhile, counsel of the ship’s owners, Dolphin Tankers, told the court that the company is incurring a huge expenditure with the ship restrained here and it should be allowed to leave as they are fully cooperating with the investigation.
Two fishermen, Ajesh Binki, 25, and Gelastine, 45, were allegedly mistaken as pirates and shot dead by marines aboard the Italian cargo vessel Feb 15, off Alappuzha.
Latorre Massimillano and Salvatore Girone were later picked up from vessel Enrica Lexie and sent to jail Feb 20 on murder charges by a court in Kollam.
Currently they are lodged at the Central Prison in the state capital. They have been put in a separate room in the jail.
The case will now be heard again Thursday.
