Calcutta Telegraph: Bhubaneswar/Paradip: Tuesday, 09 September 2014.
The state crime branch has initiated the process
for extradition of the Singapore-based owner of Mongolian cargo ship MV Black
Rose more than five years after it sunk near Paradip port.
Kok Sitki, owner of the vessel that capsized on
February 9, 2009, has been accused of operating it using forged insurance and fitness
papers. “It was found that the ship was running without a valid maritime
licence, and the insurance and fitness papers were forged. So, the crime branch
has framed a charge sheet against him. But since he is a Singapore national, he
needs to be extradited,” said a senior crime branch official.
Kujang court will issue the extradition warrant
and Singapore police will executed it.
The crime branch had sent letters rogatory (formal
request to foreign agency to seek assistance) through Kujang court to Singapore
police. “We have sought his deportation, so that the trial can take place in
Kujang court,” said additional superintendent of police (crime branch) Santosh
Kumar Pattnaik.
However, questions are being raised why action is
not being taken for illegalities committed in the transportation of iron ore
fines by the exporters.
In response to an RTI application, the Paradip Port
Trust has said: “The vessel sank due to loss of stability on account of cargo
liquification caused due to high-moisture content. The vessel had loaded 23,847 tonnes of iron ore fines by two shippers for export to China.”
Political leaders, including local MLA Damodar
Rout, and BJP state president K.V. Singh Deo have demanded a thorough probe to
ascertain the identity of the exporters.
However, crime branch sources said that since the
primary focus was to investigate the ship’s credentials and the legality of
berthing and cargo-handling, the ore being carried by the ship did not form the
part of the probe. “The probe is not yet over. The related aspects, including
the alleged illegalities in cargo-handling, may be taken up for a fresh
investigation,” said a crime branch official.
Sources said the director-general of shipping had
been informed as impropriety on part of port officials and stevedores engaged
in handling the cargo. Besides, the port had overlooked proper verification of
the ship’s documents.
The demand to salvage the sunken vessel has been
raised again. Paradip port officials said the port was not facing any hurdle in
ship movement and navigation due to its presence. “The shipwreck debris has
gone beneath the sea water surface following natural wear and tear. The movement
of ships, vessels and crafts is not being affected by it. There are instances
of debris of sunken ships lying un-retrieved in at least two major ports of the
country,” said port facility and security officer Gouri Prasad Biswal.
The wreckage salvage operation remains a
non-starter as the Union shipping ministry is yet to release funds for it. The
cost of clearing the debris is estimated at Rs 120 crore while the scrap from
the debris will hardly fetch Rs 4 crore. The port trust has submitted a report in this regard to the
shipping ministry, said official sources.
On the direction of the high court, the
Jagatsinghpur district administration had requested the Union ministry to
sanction funds for the salvage operation. “However we are yet to receive any response
from the ministry,” said an official.
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