Pirates' arrest: Claims of accused being minor based on forged documents, court told

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A court on Wednesday remanded eight alleged pirates, apprehended in March during an operation off the coast of Somalia, in judicial custody after their claims of being underage were found to be based on forged or unreliable documents. In an operation lasting over 40 hours, the INS Kolkata intercepted pirate ship ex-MV Ruen in the Arabian Sea in March this year.

The pirates were handed over to the Mumbai police for further legal action in accordance with Indian laws. The exercise was part of the ongoing Operation Sankalp, wherein Indian Navy ships are deployed in the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Aden for the safety of seafarers and mercantile trade passing through the region. The court had then remanded 27 accused in judicial custody, while eight accused were sent to a children's home at Dongri in South Mumbai.

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In April, the court directed the Juvenile Justice Board (JJB) to initiate an inquiry to ascertain the age of the accused. During the JJB's enquiry, the counsel of the embassy of Somalia sent a letter to the board stating that conflicting documents were submitted by the diplomat of the embassy without the knowledge and consent of the embassy. Further, the board observed that the records such as school leaving certificate and birth certificate were not reliable.

Hence the board relied on the ossification test carried out by the JJ hospital here, which ascertained their age to be above 20. On Wednesday, the special public prosecutor, Ranjeet Sangle, submitted the order of the board, clarifying that alleged pirates were not minors. "Fabricated and conflicting documents were submitted by the defence counsel, before the Sessions Court to mislead that they were minor. However, the enquiry of the JJB has established that the plea taken was based on procured documents and they are unreliable," Sangle said. Additional sessions judge B D Shelke accepted his submission and remanded the accused in judicial custody till August 13.

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