Kriti Agrawal –
The Supreme Court quashed the criminal proceedings pending in India against two Italian Marines, Massimiliano Latorre and Salvatore Girone, in relation to the 2012 sea-firing incident near the Kerala coast that killed two Indian fishermen, after accepting the compensation of Rupees 10 crores deposited by the Republic of Italy.
The Supreme Court has ordered that the sum of Rs. 10 crores, which was deposited with the Supreme Court Registry, be transferred to the High Court of Kerala.
The Court has asked the Chief Justice of the Kerala High Court to appoint a Judge to issue a disbursement order that protects the interests of the heirs and ensures that they receive it.
In an application submitted by the Central Government to quash criminal proceedings pending in India against the marines, the Vacation Bench comprised of Justice Indira Banerjee and Justice MR Shah issued the judgement.
The bench stated, “We are pleased that the sum of ten crores, in addition to the ex-gratia already paid, is a sufficient amount of compensation and in the best interests of the heirs. In the exercise of powers under Article 142 of the Constitution, we believe this is a good case to close all processes in India, including criminal processes. All proceedings stemming from FIR 2/2012 have been overturned and set aside.”
The Supreme Court postponed its decision on the application on Friday, citing the Republic of Italy’s deposit of Rupees ten crores in compensation.
On April 9th, 2021, the Supreme Court stated that the criminal cases against the two Italian Marines in the Enrica Lexie case will be ended only if the Republic of Italy deposits the agreed-upon compensation to be paid to the victims of the 2012 sea gunfire event.