Overview
- Fifty Indian crew from three arrested tankers were ordered released on Tuesday after telling the Bombay High Court they would not return to the vessels.
- Yellow Gate police recorded the sailors’ statements and released them the same day, with the one crew member named in the FIR allowed to go on notice.
- Following Tuesday’s humanitarian order, a separate bench on Wednesday permitted the ships to be shifted to the Alang ship‑breaking port in Gujarat due to security and navigation risks offshore.
- The tankers—MT Asphalt Star, MT Stellar Ruby and MT Al Jafzia—were intercepted in February for suspected illegal ship‑to‑ship fuel and bitumen transfers, and a multi‑agency criminal probe under a February 15 FIR is ongoing.
- The court rebuked the owners for inhuman conditions such as 300 ml of water a day and unpaid wages since late 2025, and it directed the owners to state when salaries will be cleared.