The five fishermen, who were on the death row and freed by Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa, returned home to a tumultuous reception and emotional reunion with the families here on Friday, coinciding with the World Fisheries Day.
Two days after they walked free from the Wellikada prison in Colombo, the fishermen reached Rameswaram on Friday, through New Delhi and Chennai.
Men, women, children and people from various walks of life made a beeline to the Infant Jesus Church here right from early morning. Jubilation broke in the hamlet as the fishermen — Emerson, P. Augustus, R. Wilson, K. Prasath and J. Langlet — arrived here.
If the hamlet resembled a battlefield on October 30 when the fishermen went on the rampage after the Colombo High Court awarded the death sentence to the fishermen, it wore a festive look on Friday as family members, friends and relatives celebrated the fishermen’s return with hugs.
As the steady drizzle paved the way for the celebration, the fishermen walked up to the dais as women sang hymns, expressing joy, children cheered clapping their hands, while men burst crackers and danced to drum beats.
The fishermen remained speechless as they met their families after three years. They hugged each other and broke into tears of joy. Prasath and Emerson were seeing their little sons for the first time.
The visibly tired fishermen were brought in a procession from Pamban after they left Chennai at 2 a.m. The huge crowd lustily cheered when they appeared before the dais inside the church and thanked them with folded hands. The families stood by the side of the dais with tears in their eyes as people vied with one another to greet the fishermen. “This is the happiest day in my life as I got back my only son,” said Infanta, mother of Langlet.
Kaviya, 13, and Subitsha, 11, hugged their father Wilson and broke down. “I do not know what to say, I am extremely happy and thank all,” said Kaviya.
The fishermen were accompanied by Minister for Fisheries K.A. Jayapal; Minister for Sports and Youth Welfare S. Sundararaj; Fisheries Secretary R. Vijayakumar; and Commissioner Beela Rajesh.
The fishermen remained speechless as they met their families after three years
