Illegal ferry to Sri Lanka: Five of a family among 7 held

Acting on a tip off, a team of customs officials was keeping a watch on the shores in Rameswaram. During the check, they intercepted the seven-member group at Dhanushkodi and arrested them after inquiries. The arrested include five members of a same family, an agent and an auto-rickshaw driver.

M Mahesh, Deputy Superintendent of Police, Ramewsaram, said that the family members were all inmates of the Sri Lankan refugee camp at Anaiyur in Madurai. 

After preliminary inquiries, the Customs Department handed over the arrested persons to the Dhanuskodi police for further action, sources said.

The family members were identified as Ganesan (66), his wife Solamalai (59), Kumudhini (31), Malar (28) and Jegan (10). Besides, Anandhan, an agent from Maruthupandi Nagar, and Loganathan, an auto driver from Rameswaram, were also arrested.  The DSP, after investigations, said that these refugees were set to move to Sri Lanka illegally via sea. One of their relatives residing in Sri Lanka had invited the family to settle down in the island nation. 

A case under The Foreigners Act, 1946, was registered against the arrested persons, the DSP said. Last year, eleven similar cases of illegal ferrying attempts were registered in different parts of Rameswaram and Mandapam.