HC orders arrest of Cambodian ship

TNN, Mar 2, 2010

CHENNAI: The Madras high court on Monday ordered the arrest of a foreign vessel, M V Lady Alla, flying the Cambodian flag and now lying at the outer anchorage of the Nagapattinam port in Tamil Nadu, after two of its senior crew members complained that the ship's owners had not paid wages to the crew.

Acting on an application from Ukrainian nationals Kozak Pavlo and Palagin Dmtro, who have filed a suit for recovery of dues worth $11,993 and for arrest and sale of the vessel, Justice G Rajasuria said a prima facie case had been made out for ordering the arrest of the ship. He ordered the court registry to take steps to issue a warrant. The case was posted to March 8.

In their application for the ship's arrest, Pavlo and Dmtro, said the vessel was owned by Shipping and Trucks Company Ltd, London. The owners were in arrears of payment towards wages for the plaintiffs for several months. Besides, others in the 16-member crew on board the vessel had also not been paid wages, they said.

The ship arrived at Nagapattinam port on February 11, 2010 carrying a cargo of China clay for discharge at the port. Despite being promised that they would be paid before the vessel reached Nagapattinam, the owners failed to pay wages to the plaintiffs. As a result, they were unable to send money to their families, they said. The vessel was not being maintained properly, and it was becoming unseaworthy day by day. The crew were also not provided with food and water, they said. According to their information, the ship's arrest has earlier been ordered by the Bombay high court in two different suits.

As allowing the vessel to sail away without the crew receiving their wages would cause irreparable loss and hardship to them, the applicants wanted the ship to be arrested.

Nagapattinam port authorities had said the vessel entered the port illegally.

After finding that the crew were suffering from want of food and water, the authorities arranged for water, meat and vegetables to be ferried to the vessel, with the crew bearing the cost.