Katchatheevu: Sri Lanka Points to India's Stand Before the Supreme Court
Sri Lanka's President said at a public rally that India has acknowledged before its own Supreme Court that Katchatheevu island belongs to Sri Lanka, and described India-Sri Lanka relations as good.
In the previous week, the Supreme Court of India heard a batch of petitions that challenge the handing over of Katchatheevu to Sri Lanka in the 1970s as unconstitutional.
The Attorney General of India told the court that India has excellent relations with Sri Lanka and does not intend to reopen the 1974 and 1976 agreements with Sri Lanka. The case is listed for its next hearing in February 2027.
The Bench said the Centre and the Tamil Nadu government should "sensitise" fishermen not to cross into Sri Lankan waters.
The issue is closely linked to the frequent arrest of Tamil Nadu fishermen by the Sri Lanka Navy for fishing in Sri Lankan waters, often with bottom trawlers, a fishing method that damages the seabed. Sri Lanka's Fisheries Minister also welcomed the Attorney General's statement.
Sri Lanka's President also repeated that Sri Lanka will not allow its land, sea or air space to be used in any way that threatens India.
Katchatheevu: History and Legal Status
Katchatheevu is a small, uninhabited island of about 285 acres in the Palk Strait, the narrow stretch of sea between Tamil Nadu and northern Sri Lanka. It lies about 33 km from the Indian coast, north-east of Rameswaram, and close to Sri Lanka's Delft (Neduntheevu) island. Under agreements signed in 1974, India recognised it as part of Sri Lanka. Its only building is St. Anthony's Church, where Indian and Sri Lankan Catholics gather for an annual festival.
The Attorney General's statement that India will not reopen the 1974 and 1976 agreements repeats the Union government's long-held position on Katchatheevu. Sri Lanka's President has now used this statement to underline that the island's status is settled, while the petitions stay pending in the Supreme Court until February 2027.
Fishermen Issue in India-Sri Lanka Bilateral Relations
The fishermen issue is the long-running problem of Indian fishermen, mostly from Tamil Nadu, crossing the sea boundary into Sri Lankan waters to fish, and being arrested by the Sri Lanka Navy, with their boats seized. It is the most frequent source of friction between the two countries, and it mixes livelihood, environment, law and politics. At its heart is the narrow, shallow and fish-rich Palk Bay, which both countries share.
The Supreme Court's remark that the Centre and Tamil Nadu must sensitise fishermen not to cross into Sri Lankan waters, and Sri Lanka's welcome of India's stand, show that both governments see the fishermen problem as one to be solved through behaviour change and cooperation, not by reopening the boundary.
- Katchatheevu: about 285 acres, uninhabited, in the Palk Strait; recognised as Sri Lankan under the June 1974 agreement
- Related agreement: 23 March 1976 (Gulf of Mannar and Bay of Bengal boundary; no fishing in each other's waters)
- Supreme Court case challenging the agreements: next hearing in February 2027
- India's stand in court (Attorney General): no intention of reopening the 1974 and 1976 agreements
- Key precedent cited by petitioners: In re Berubari Union (1960), ceding territory needs a constitutional amendment
- Sri Lanka banned bottom trawling in 2017
- Sri Lanka's President completed two years in office in September 2026