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Jaya urges Modi to halt Sri Lankan navy's repeated arrests of Indian fishermen

The chief minister of the Tamil Nadu, J Jayalalithaa, on Firday urged the Indian prime minister Narendra Modi to take action over the arrests of Indian fishermen by the Sri Lankan navy, after the latest arrest of 12 fishermen took place this week.

There is an "urgent and imperative need" to find a lasting solution to the situation she wrote in her latest letter to Mr Modi, the PTI reported.

"My Government stays committed to ensuring and upholding the traditional rights of fishermen from Tamil Nadu to fish in their traditional fishing waters of Palk Bay," her letter read.

"The repeated attempts by Sri Lankan Navy to prevent the exercise of the traditional rights by our fishermen by continuing apprehensions, arrests and assaults cannot be allowed to continue further and needs to be halted through concerted efforts by the Government of India."

Twenty-seven fishermen are currently detained in Sri Lanka, including 12 fishermen arrested on Thursday. Seventy-three boats are also currently apprehended.

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