Italian ‘killer’ marine guards to return for trial
22 Mar 2013
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today ''welcomed'' the return of two Italian marine guards accused of killing two Indian fishermen off the south Indian coast for further trial in India.
The marines were sent back to India after the issue threatened to rock the Indo-Italian relationship. They two will land in Delhi today after a few weeks' sojourn in their own country.
"We are happy with the outcome. I welcome the return of Italian naval guards," Manmohan Singh told reporters.
"The Italian naval guards are coming back in accordance with the direction of Supreme Court and it is consistent with the dignity of judicial process in India," he pompously added.
In fact the return of the marines seems to owe more to diplomatic efforts than to the ''dignity'' of the Indian judicial process. External affairs minister Salman Khurshid told Parliament today that the death sentence would not be passed on the duo as theirs was not one of those 'rarest of rare' cases that invite hanging under Indian law.
The Supreme Court had allowed the marines to return to Italy for voting in the February elections there on a personal bond by the Italian ambassador that they would return for further trial. However, on 11March, Italy told India that the two tanker guards would not be sent back.
