Twenty fishermen from Tamil Nadu were allegedly assaulted by Sri Lankan navalmen while they were fishing near Katchathivu islet early Tuesday morning, officials said.
The navy personnel surrounded the fishermen's boats, allegedly beat them up and then took away the GPS equipment. They also cut the fishing nets and threw the catch into the sea, officials said.
Katchathivu is an islet ceded by India to Sri Lanka in the 1970.