KOCHI: In a surprising twist to the Enrica Lexie episode which may sabotage all efforts by the state police, the officials with the Directorate General of Shipping will inform the Kerala High Court on Tuesday that they have no objection to release the Italian vessel involved in the killing of two Indian fishermen.According to sources, a statement in this regard will be submitted before the court by Assistant Solicitor General P Parameswaran Nair. The DG Shipping will also inform the court that the security guards on board the ship had shot at the fishing boat without consulting the ship’s master. “The vessel need not be held back any further for the preliminary investigation conducted by the Mercantile Marine Department (MMD) since all evidence from the ship have been taken. The vessel may be released on condition that the owners of the vessel shall present the master/crew or security guards of the vessel before the competent authority or court in order to pursue the investigation further, at the owner’s cost,” the draft statement by the MMD said.The preliminary inquiry being conducted by the MMD, Kochi, has not been over as they are yet to collect evidence from the arrested marines, who are in jail. The MMD has not been able to complete the investigation at an earlier date due to non-cooperation of the ship’s crew since they were awaiting instructions from the Italian ministry.The inquiry conducted by the MMD has found that the firing was unprovoked. The fishing boat was passing clear of the Italian merchant vessel. Even if a threat was perceived, the merchant ship having a maximum speed of 14 knots could have easily outmanoeuvred the fishing boat which had a maximum speed of 6 knots, the statement pointed out.
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