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Plea for recall of arrest order rejected

The vacation bench of the Orissa High Court has rejected a plea for recall of the order for the arrest of the 'Debi', which has been anchored at Paradip since it was issued on Feb 23, 2024. The high court’s admiralty judge had issued the interim order on Paradip International Cargo Terminal (PICT)’s admiralty suit for recovery of Rs 7.95 crore towards berth and penal berth charges from MV Debi. The PICT has a multipurpose berth at Paradip port on a build, operate, transfer (BOT) basis and operates a multipurpose clean cargo terminal catering to various customers. The admiralty suit also sought the arrest of the vessel for enforcement of maritime claim under the Admiralty (Jurisdiction and Settlement of Maritime Claims) Act, 2017. The 'Debi' had filed an interlocutory application for recall of the interim order. Vacation judge V. Narasingh said on May 30, that the court was of the considered view that in the present IA, the Defendant (MV Debi) in the guise of the current application in nomenclature of an application for recall was in fact seeking review of the order dated 23.2.2024 which was untenable. The 'Debi' had arrived at Paradip via Gresik to load a cargo of steel plates for Denmark, but 22 kg of cocaine were allegedly seized from the vessel on Dec 1, 2023.

Bulk carrier arrested in Paradip

The Orissa High Court has ordered the arrest of the 'Debi' from which 22 packets of cocaine were seized. The Paradip International Cargo Terminal (PICT) Private Ltd. had moved Orissa High Court seeking recovery of charges towards berth hire. Customs officials had seized cocaine valuated at ₹220 crore from vessel, berthed at PICT. The cocaine packets were concealed in the cranes of the ship. Subsequently, Assistant Commissioner, Paradip Customs Division directed the traffic manager, Paradip Port Trust, that no movement authorisations should be given to the vessel without prior consultation. The suspected ship had its last port of call from Gresik and was destined to Denmark. The PICT had sought recovery of ₹7.95 crore towards berth occupancy. V. Narasingha, Admiralty Judge, passed a order for arrest of vessel at Paradip Port.

Court has ordered to post a $12 million bond for release

More than two months after detaining the 'Debi' a court has set terms for the release of the ship which has been held along with its crew of 21 Vietnamese citizens approximately three miles off Paradip Port. The case was presented in an Indian district court on Feb 12, and lawyers reported the judge set stringent terms for the release of the vessel. The court has ordered the ship owner to post a $12 million bond and provide a $1.2 million bank guarantee before the vessel is released. The Indian customs authority had initially detained the crew for interviews after they discovered 22 kg of cocaine with a street value of $26 million hidden aboard the bulker. The reports did not indicate if any of the crew would be charged with crimes, but earlier it appeared they were being cleared of involvement in the smuggling. The Indian authorities confiscated the crew’s cellphones and computers leaving them virtually isolated and unable to contact family at home in Vietnam. In mid-January, there was an altercation aboard the ship with reports that it might have been due to depression among the crew members. The vessel’s third engineer jumped into the harbor and was taken to a hospital with injuries to his hand. The initial investigation indicated that the cocaine was intercepted with India not the intended destination. The authorities believed it was going to be removed from the ship only when it reached Europe.