Italy moves Kerala HC seeking quashing of charges against marines

NEW DELHI/KOCHI: Italy today raised the pitch over the killing of two Indian fishermen by its marines by moving the Kerala High Court seeking quashing of murder charges against them and its visiting envoy demanding that truth be ascertained.

However, India made it clear that the issue would be handled according to the law of the land and said the "very fair and free judiciary" will take the right decision.

Italy's concerns on the incident were conveyed by its Deputy Foreign Minister Steffan de Mistura, who rushed here this morning, during his meeting with his Indian counterpart Preneet Kaur.

After the hour-long meeting, both stuck to the known stands of their respective countries even as the Italian Deputy Foreign Minister said the ties between the two countries are "very important for all of us".

"As far as the law point is concerned, they have their interpretations and we have our interpretations. As of today, the two people (Italian Marines arrested) are on Indian soil and tomorrow the Indian court is going to decide what steps are to be taken further," Kaur told reporters.

"So as far as we are concerned in India, we certainly will go by our law," she said as her Italian counterpart maintained that the incident took place in "international waters".

In Kochi, Italian authorities moved the Kerala High Court seeking quashing of FIR against two Naval guards charged with murder. They were charged by a local court on Monday.

Mistura said there was an agreement on three points, but Kaur denied having reached any understanding. "The only agreement is that the law will take its own course," she said.