Asif Hassan—AFP
Police say there are 428 Indian inmates in custody already.
Pakistani marine forces on Saturday arrested 47 Indian fishermen for allegedly violating territorial waters in the Arabian Sea, police said.
Pakistan’s Maritime Security Agency also captured eight boats belonging to the fishermen, who it said had strayed into Pakistani waters. The fishermen were later handed over to local police in Karachi.
“We have been given the custody of the 47 Indian fishermen who have been arrested from the sea for violating territorial waters,” said Fida Hussain, a senior police official in Karachi. “We will present these detainees to court for completion of the due legal procedure,” he said.
Such arrests are frequently carried out by both countries, as the maritime border in the Arabian Sea is poorly defined and many fishing boats lack the technology needed to be certain of their precise location. The fishermen often languish in jail even after serving their term, as poor diplomatic ties between the two neighbors mean fulfilling official requirements can take a long time.
Pakistan released 172 Indian fishermen in February as “a goodwill gesture” but arrested 45 others last month.
A Pakistani jail official in Karachi said that they already had 428 Indian inmates in custody before the fresh arrests on Saturday.