Italian marines back in India

New Delhi: Finally succumbing to Indian pressure, Italy on Friday sent back its two marines Massimilano Latore and Salvatore Girone to India, along with the Italian Deputy Foreign Minister to stand trial in India. The marines, who are accused of killing two Indian fishermen off the Indian port of Kochi, landed in the evening, bringing to a closure one of the biggest diplomatic rows that the country has faced. The U-turn made by Italy, which had earlier refused to send the marines back, questioning the apex court and quoting United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 1982, came as a surprise, though External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid claimed that there was "no deal and no conditions." Claiming credit, Salman Khurshid said that despite loud noises made by the Opposition, the channels of communication were never closed. "We moved in the right direction," he declared, admitting the posture of the Supreme Court and the senior leaders of the government had an impact. He did not mind if the Opposition, too, staked claim to credit for the diplomatic successA Khurshid admitted that the Indian government did give in writing that the marines would not be arrested if they returned within the stipulated time. Their offence is such that it does not attract death penalty, since it is awarded in the rarest of rare cases. He explained that the clarifications were given only after checking it out with the law officers. "We have not given anything that is already not there," he remarked. Claiming that the chapter was closed, he said now the trial would take place. Normally courts are set up and the judges allocated by the state government, but due to the special nature of the crime, the Supreme Court directed the Centre to set up the court. "Hope, we will be able to constitute the court at the earliest and justice will be established soon," he remarked. Earlier in the day, Khurshid made suo-motu statement in parliament on the Italian issue. The marines, who landed in India, will be staying at the Italian Embassy and would be free to move around. As per the commitment made to the apex court, they were supposed to land by March 22. Had it not been for the tremendous pressure mounted by the polity as a whole, Italy may not have sent the marines back to stand trial in India. The plea put forth by them was that since the shooting involved an Italian-flagged vessel in international waters, the marines should be prosecuted in their home country.

The news of the return of the marines brought a sigh of relief to the Indian establishment, with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh saying, "The coming back of the Italian marines is in accordance with the directions of the Supreme Court. We are happy with the outcome, which is consistent with the dignity of the judicial process." Earlier, Manmohan Singh had warned Italy of dire consequences, if they failed to honour the commitment made to the Supreme Court. Salman Khurshid also took credit for the necessary changes in the US resolution against Sri Lanka at the UNHRC in Geneva. He informed that it was due to India's insistence that the resolution had to clarify that the independent and credible investigation should be to the satisfaction of the "international community." According to him, India did not intend to be a "spoiler" by pressing for amendments at the last-minute, since a consensus had already been evolved by the US. Any further pressure thereafter could have reduced the number of countries supporting the resolution. Anita Saluja