A BAHRAIN-BASED fisherman who died in an incident in Qatari waters suffered a haemorrhage resulting from a ruptured artery, according to the death certificate.

Indian Karthikeyan Thangarasu, 40, died in Qatari waters on September 21 when his boat collided with a Qatari Coast Guard vessel.

His three-member crew of Rasu Rakkappan, 26, Iyyappan Andavar, 23, and Samayamuthu Malaikannan, 34, have been detained in Qatar and their boat has been seized.

Tamil Nadu’s former chief minister J Jayalalithaa has appealed to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to intervene to secure the three men’s release and return Mr Thangarasu’s body.

“The arrested fishermen are the sole breadwinners of their families and if their immediate release is not secured, the fishermen and their families will be put to great financial and mental hardship,” she is quoted as saying by Indian newspaper Deccan Chronicle.

“These poor, innocent fishermen had gone to Bahrain to earn a meagre livelihood and support their families.

“The family of the deceased fisherman is shattered and seek the early return of his body.”

Appeal

In a letter to the Prime Minister, she also asked the Indian Embassy in Bahrain to secure compensation from Mr Thangarasu’s employer.

However, boat owner Saleh Nasser said details of what happened were still unclear.
“They don’t allow me to speak to my employees who are detained,” he added.
“How can we find out the actual story on what happened at sea?
“Now they are saying the detained fishermen will be released and sent back to India after the Eid Al Adha holidays.”