SC notice to Centre,Kerala govt on Italy petition

Senior advocate Harish Salve,appearing for the Italian government,said his client was also deemed a person within the meaning of Article 32 for invoking the jurisdiction of the SC. The Bench posted the matter for further hearing on May 8.

In its plea,Italy asserted that the Kerala government had no locus standi to register any criminal case as the alleged offence ought to be treated under international law and covenants India being a signatory to the UN charter. Salve told the Bench that the matter needed to be dealt with between the two countries and the Kerala government had no jurisdiction in interfering with the matter as the incident had occurred in contigual waters 12 nautical miles beyond the Indian jurisdiction.

He said the action of the Italian personnel was part of their official duty.