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Crew protested against prolonged detention

At least 21 crew members of the 'Debi', which has been detained in Paradip since Dec 1, 2023, after the recovery of 22 kg of cocaine worth R 220 crore aboard the vessel, staged a protest on Nov 27, 2024, against their prolonged detention. The protest started when the ship was moored at the berth for supplies. Crew members halted al work.preventing the ship from returning to the anchorage area for several hours. ;aid many crew members are suffering from depression due to tthe prolonged detention. Despite the drug haul, no arrests have been made as the State Forensic Science Laboratory (SFSL) in Bhubaneswar is yet to submit its analysis report to the Kujang court. In Jan, the Vietnamese ship owner's petition for the vessel's release was rejected by the Kujang court.

Orissa High Court ordered sale

The Orissa High Court ordered the sale of 'Debi', which had arrived at Paradip Port on Nov 23, 2023, and was destined for Denmark. On Dec 1, the shipr was seized by the customs officials after discovering 22.2 kilograms of cocaine aboard. The Orissa High Court ordered the sale of the bulk carrier not for its involvement in the drug bust case, but after the ship owner, the Asia Pacific Shipping Company, Vietnam, failed to clear the due related to berthing charges and penalties to the Paradip International Container Terminal (PITC). In Feb 2024, the Orissa High Court allowed the ship to return to its owner only if the company provided a bank guarantee and an indemnity bond. Following this, the PITC charged the shipping company nearly $947,000 for overstay docking. The shipping company argued in court, stating that the vessel was subject to pay docking fees only upto the time before it was seized by customs officials in the drug case investigation. The company also claimed the vessel had overstayed because of the authorities' investigation, which was not under their control. However, the PITC claim was found valid, and the court ordered the arrest of the ship on Feb 23. On Aug 20, the PITC came back seeking permission from the court to sell the ship, stating the shipping company had failed to pay the bills or provide any security. PITC further noted that with time, docking fees were piling up for the vessel. Moreover, the vessel was deteriorating, and the value was decreasing. The court ordered the vessel to be sold after the survey reports determined its value. The details of the sale will be provided after the survey report, which is expected to be available to the court in September.

Plea for recall of arrest order rejected

The vacation bench of the Orissa High Court has rejected a plea for recall of the order for the arrest of the 'Debi', which has been anchored at Paradip since it was issued on Feb 23, 2024. The high court’s admiralty judge had issued the interim order on Paradip International Cargo Terminal (PICT)’s admiralty suit for recovery of Rs 7.95 crore towards berth and penal berth charges from MV Debi. The PICT has a multipurpose berth at Paradip port on a build, operate, transfer (BOT) basis and operates a multipurpose clean cargo terminal catering to various customers. The admiralty suit also sought the arrest of the vessel for enforcement of maritime claim under the Admiralty (Jurisdiction and Settlement of Maritime Claims) Act, 2017. The 'Debi' had filed an interlocutory application for recall of the interim order. Vacation judge V. Narasingh said on May 30, that the court was of the considered view that in the present IA, the Defendant (MV Debi) in the guise of the current application in nomenclature of an application for recall was in fact seeking review of the order dated 23.2.2024 which was untenable. The 'Debi' had arrived at Paradip via Gresik to load a cargo of steel plates for Denmark, but 22 kg of cocaine were allegedly seized from the vessel on Dec 1, 2023.