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As Italy pushes for “midway formula,” India swears by court
- New Delhi has resisted pressure from Rome for a “midway formula,” telling that South Block will not be able to intervene because the matter had reached the courts which were “fair and independent.”
- Rome has made three basic arguments: Italy has a provision for extra-territorial application of its laws; United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) provides for prosecution in the home country; and vessels have the right to fire at pirates.
- The Ministry of External Affairs counters these by saying Indian laws, too, have a provision for extra-territorial application; the relevant UNCLOS article applies to naval vessels and, that too, in cases of collision; and only naval vessels have the right to fire at pirates, but in this incident, off the Kerala coast, armed fishermen were shot at in an area with no history of piracy.
