Chetan Syam’s family is crestfallen after he is sentenced in South Korea.
“Old man, don’t be worried, I shall be back,” first officer Chetan Syam told his father Commodore (Rtd) DR Syam before leaving for the court. DR Syam who served in the Indian Navy for 40 years as an engineer had been waiting for his son since last December.
Two days ago, an appeals court in Daejeon, South Korea, sentenced Chetan to eight months in prison turning down a lower court’s decision six months ago.
Chetan and Jaspreet Chawla, the first officer and captain respectively of super tanker Hebei Spirit, were found guilty of being ‘insufficiently vigilant’ as the anchored vessel spilled 10,900 tonnes of crude oil into the sea. The oil spill took place on December 7, 2007 after a barge carrying a construction crane broke free, rammed into the tanker and bored three holes in it.
“His mother is shattered. We are all very shocked. On that day, Chetan called me up and said there had been an incident. He did not say what. The next day he narrated the whole incident. There was no talk of a case being registered then. Suddenly, a few days later, he told us that his ship was being allowed to sail towards China, but he, along with his captain, had been detained and charges pressed against them. The news was very distressing,” said Commodore Syam, who lives in Mumbai with his wife, Alice.
Alice said that Chetan’s wife left for South Korea to be with him. “On June 25, the lower court exonerated my son and captain Chawla. We were extremely relieved. We were hoping Chetan would be back by June 27 or so and we would all celebrate his son Agastya’s first birthday on July 2,” said Alice.
But on his way to the airport, Chetan was stopped from flying out of the country. There had been an appeal in the case by the prosecution in the higher court. “It was a shock. They could have easily flown back for the appeal,” said Commodore Syam.
A letter from the Indian shipping ministry requesting South Korea to allow them return did not help and Chetan was forced to wait for the appeal and was holed up in a service apartment.
“In my opinion, there was nothing wrong with what the captain and the crew did. I have spent 40 years with the Indian Navy and am well versed with all aspects of shipping. In fact, the captain of the ship was awarded by an international shipping body for his exemplary role in trying to control the oil leak. Clearly, there is a serious misunderstanding,” said the retired naval officer.
The court also fined Chetan 7,000 dollars. His captain was given a heavier sentence, a year with a fine of 14,000 dollars.
“I was shattered after hearing the judgment. No one was expecting this,” said Chetan’s wife Preetha over the phone from Daejeon, South Korea.
t_mayank@dnaindia.net
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