KOCHI: The state government on Thursday submitted before the Kerala High Court that the role of the master of the Italian ship in the killing of two fishermen off Neendakara coast is under investigation.Appearing for the state, Advocate-General K P Dandapani strongly opposed the release of the Italian ship Enrica Lexie, detained at the Cochin Port, saying that the ship cannot be permitted to leave as the probe is on.A submission in this regard was made on a petition filed by Dolfin Tankers, owner of the vessel, seeking its release. Justice Harun-ul-Rasheed, before whom the petition came up, asked the registry to post the case before another Bench, which was considering a similar petition. The Advocate-General submitted that the ship could not run away from the clutches of law. “In case the forensic report reveals any tampering regarding the weapons, further investigation will have to be conducted inside the vessel for seizing other material objects and evidence. So the presence of the vessel at Kochi is essential,” the AG said.Dhandapani further submitted that the report from the Forensic Laboratory will be received within 14 days and only after that a decision can be taken regarding further investigation. The accused were arrested on February 19. However, the investigation was delayed for 10 days due to the non-cooperation of the marines and the crew of the ship, AG said.
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