August 16, 2026 09:03 pm (IST)
Follow us:
facebook-white sharing button
twitter-white sharing button
instagram-white sharing button
youtube-white sharing button
After SC rebuke, BCI chief apologises to NALSAR students over enrolment freeze row | Independence Day: PM Modi’s big youth pitch— AI training, free coaching amid exam row and job concerns | ‘Shakti Ki Saptadhara’: Modi reveals 7 pillars to power India’s next leap in his I-Day speech from Red Fort | West Bengal STF arrests 3 more suspected Pakistani spies in Cooch Behar | Bengal man arrested in Bengaluru over terror links, Afghanistan travel plan | Ajit Doval breaks silence on Operation Sindoor in Discovery’s explosive new docuseries | Rahul Gandhi's 'mock hug' taunt sparks row; Centre stresses 'mutual respect' with Italy | Delhi on high alert: Bomb threat to High Court, airport and multiple locations ahead of I-Day | ‘Who are they to interfere?’: CJI Surya Kant slams Bar Council of India over NALSAR students’ enrolment row | 'Shows how low Congress has sunk': BJP slams Rahul Gandhi over Modi foreign policy jibe

CPI-M MP urges centre to move to free Indian sailors jailed in Nigeria

| | Aug 15, 2015, at 06:34 am
New Delhi/Kolkata, Aug 14 (IBNS): The Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) Rajya Sabha member, Ritabrata Banerjee, has urged the centre to ensure the return of 11 Indian sailors who are held captive in Nigerian jail since July last year.
Demanding a positive step to free the sailors, he sent a letter to External affairs minister Sushma Swaraj on Tuesday (Aug 11).
 
According to reports, 11 Indian sailors- Jogesh Chandra Das, Pradeep Kumar Sharma, S. Kumar, Ajay Kumar, Ankit Rana, Praveen Kumar, Purn Chandra Yadav, Manoj Kumar, Neeraj Kumar, Joyful Rogmai and Mohammad Tabab- were in cargo vessel MT Maro which was forced to anchor in the Port of Brass in Nigeria for technical problems.
 
On July 24, the ship and the sailors were arrested by the Nigerian Navy and then handed over to the Economic Financial Crime Commission (EFCC) of Nigeria.
 
The EFCC allegedly slapped fake charges on them as the sailors were unable to pay money which the EFCC wanted (close to Rs 200 Cr) . The sailors were allegedly tortured physically and mentally in Nigerian jail.
 
However, the External Affairs ministry is yet to reply to the letter of Ritabrata Banerjee yet.
 
"I hope Indian government will look into this matter and take a positive action soon to bring back the sailors safely," Ritabrata Banerjee told IBNS.
 
(Reporting by Deepayan Sinha)  
 
#Indian sailors # Nigeria jail # Indians in Nigeria # External Affairs Minister # Ritabrata Banerjee

Support Our Journalism

We cannot do without you.. your contribution supports unbiased journalism

IBNS is not driven by any ism- not wokeism, not racism, not skewed secularism, not hyper right-wing or left liberal ideals, nor by any hardline religious beliefs or hyper nationalism. We want to serve you good old objective news, as they are. We do not judge or preach. We let people decide for themselves. We only try to present factual and well-sourced news.

Support objective journalism for a small contribution.
Related Images
In Images: PM Modi’s 80th Independence Day address, grand celebrations at Red Fort
In Images: PM Modi’s 80th Independence Day address, grand celebrations at Red Fort Aug 15, 2026, at 03:42 pm
In Images: Kolkata’s Red Road comes alive with Independence Day parade, tableaux and drills
In Images: Kolkata’s Red Road comes alive with Independence Day parade, tableaux and drills Aug 15, 2026, at 02:23 pm
In Images: Suvendu Adhikari pays tribute to Khudiram Bose in Keshpur
In Images: Suvendu Adhikari pays tribute to Khudiram Bose in Keshpur Aug 11, 2026, at 11:47 pm
Related Videos
State buses to have CCTV cameras installed: Aug 06, 2026, at 11:55 am
Exiled Bangladeshi writer Taslima Nasreen visits Indian Coffee House in Kolkata Aug 05, 2026, at 03:17 pm
Exiled Bangladeshi writer Taslima Nasreen in Kolkata Aug 05, 2026, at 03:17 pm