Case filed against captain of Panama-registered ship over fishing boat collision off Kerala coast

The police have registered a case against the captain of a Panama-registered ship that rammed a fishing boat off the Kerala coast, leaving two fishermen missing and nine others rescued, officials said on Monday (March 9, 2026).

The Vizhinjam Coastal Police registered the case against the captain of the ship named Solis.

The case was registered on Sunday, based on a complaint lodged by Ramesh Mathew of Sakthikulangara, Kollam, owner of the fishing boat St Joseph, which left for fishing on Friday night.

The FIR said that the missing crew members are Badal Das (23) and Laxman Das (45), both natives of West Bengal. Five fishermen from West Bengal and four from Tamil Nadu were rescued, the police said.

“The accused, while holding the charge of the captain, navigated the Panama-registered ship named Solis through the ship channel in a defective and negligent manner to endanger human life. On March 7 around 2.30 pm in the Arabian Sea area about 70 nautical miles from Vizhinjam and 53 nautical miles from Colachel in Tamil Nadu, the ship collided with a fishing trawling boat named St Joseph,” the FIR said.

The FIR further said that the trawling boat sank following the accident, causing a loss of about ₹1.5 crore to its owner.

The case was registered under Sections 282 (rash or negligent navigation of a vessel endangering human life), 125(a) (negligent act causing hurt), 125(b) (negligent act causing grievous hurt) and 324 (mischief causing damage) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), police said.

The Indian Coast Guard said on Sunday that the search for the missing fishermen was continuing.

The nine rescued fishermen were brought to Vizhinjam on Sunday and admitted to hospitals for treatment.

The Director General of Shipping has also ordered an investigation into the incident.