Pak warship violated safety norms, damaged Indian frigate: Navy chief
NEW DELHI: In its bid to garner propaganda points over the entire MV Suez episode, Pakistani Navy behaved in an unprofessional manner and its warship PNS Babur violated all international navigational safety norms to brush against Indian frigate INS Godavari, damaging one of its helicopter nets.
Speaking for the first time after last week's diplomatic war of words between India and Pakistan, Navy chief Admiral Nirmal Verma on Friday said the
crew of INS Godavari, in contrast, had conducted itself "very professionally".
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The Pakistani ship came much closer to our ship than what was prudent to damage one of our helicopter nets...there are clear rules of navigation at sea," he said.
In addition to the formal protest lodged through the Pakistani high commission, Admiral Verma indicated the matter had also been taken up with the international coalition of naval forces operating against piracy off the Somali coast.
Asked if the multi-national Combined Task Force 151, under whose command the PNS Babur was operating, had been informed about the incident, he said, "You can be sure that everybody knows about that."
The Navy chief rejected all criticism largely propelled by shrill television coverage of the event that India had failed to react promptly in dispatching a warship to protect MV Suez during its passage to Salalah port in Oman after being released by pirates on payment of a $2.1 million ransom.
"Several navies are operating together in anti-piracy patrols...Whichever warship is closest to a merchant vessel under distress comes to help. And the warships that were the closest (PNS Babur) helped in this instance," he said.
Indian Navy, on its part, "worked a lot behind the scenes" to "actively coordinate" with other foreign navies in the region to ensure MV Suez's safe passage. "We are not in the business of taking credit," he said.
INS Godavari, the only Indian warship deployed in the Gulf of Aden, was at that point in time busy escorting two other merchant vessels, with 21 Indians on board them. "There is no way INS Godavari could have left them, as they would have been susceptible to piracy," he said.
When hijacked ships such as the Egyptian-owned MV Suez which had six Indians among its 22-strong crew captained by a Pakistani national are released after long periods of captivity, there is a "tremendous sense of fear" among the crew about being hijacked again.
"When it seemed the families of the sailors were not sure of their safety, we decided to show the flag of the Indian warship (INS Godavari), and it means a lot," he added. That is when PNS Babur, apparently unhappy at the presence of INS Godavari, indulged in risky manoeuvres to brush against the Indian warship.
Pak warship violated safety norms, damaged Indian frigate: Navy chief - The Times of India
