AFP news agency reported that 35 Somali pirates were escorted to Mumbai on the Indian Navy destroyer INS Kolkata on Saturday (March 23).
The men were arrested during an Indian operation last week to retake a hijacked ship and free the hostages on board.
A Somali pirate is escorted ashore by the Indian Navy. Photo: DW
"INS Kolkata with 35 arrested pirates returned to Mumbai on March 23," the Indian Navy said in a statement.
In the video released by ANI news agency, the pirates can be seen standing at the dock next to the cargo ship MV Ruen and surrounded by naval commandos.
Indian Navy spokesman Vivek Madhwal said this was the first time in more than a decade that pirates had been brought to the country for prosecution and trial.
This is a departure from India's recent practice of leaving unarmed pirates at sea after rescuing ships and crew.
The defendants could face the death penalty or life imprisonment under India's anti-piracy laws.
The Maltese-flagged MV Ruen was hijacked last December off the coast of Somalia. It was the first cargo ship to be seized by pirates since 2017.
The Indian Navy said the pirates used the MV Ruen as a mother ship to launch attacks on other vessels.
During the rescue operation of MV Ruen on March 15, Indian Navy commandos boarded the ship from helicopters and launched a swift attack, forcing the pirates to surrender.
The operation also freed all 17 crew members of the MV Ruen.
Since December last year, India has deployed at least a dozen warships in the Gulf of Aden and the northern Arabian Sea to protect freedom of navigation amid attacks on shipping lanes in the Red Sea by Houthi forces in Yemen.
Quang Anh (according to AFP, DW)
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