The Bombay High Court Tuesday ordered the release of 50 Indian crew members who had been stranded since February on three vessels that were detained over illegal transfers of fuel and Iranian bitumen.
The three vessels — MT Asphalt Star, MT Stellar Ruby and MT Al Jafzia — were accused of using deceptive tactics usually associated with “shadow fleets”.
Here’s what shadow fleets are and the tactics they generally employ to avoid detection.
Shadow fleet is a broad term used to refer to vessels that use deceptive shipping practices to move sanctioned commodities across the seas without being caught.
Such vessels have been key for the transportation of products such as oil and petroleum from countries such as Iran, Venezuela and Russia which, over the years, have faced various degrees of Western sanctions.
Shadow fleet vessels operate in a manner that makes tracking, detection and enforcement difficult. Their deceptive practices include creating opaque business structures that conceal ownership and the commodity’s origin.
According to various estimates, the shadow fleet comprises over 3,000 vessels. Such vessels are often 15 to 20 years old — meaning they are barely seaworthy — and operate with substandard insurance and certifications.
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These vessels are often involved in ship-to-ship transfers of oil or other commodities. Such transfers are not illegal in themselves; they could have logistical reasons.
But in the case of shadow fleet tankers, ship-to-ship transfers are often done in the high seas, far from a port’s oversight. This frequently involves mixing sanctioned crude with non-sanctioned oil, or carrying out a series of ship-to-ship transfers to obscure the origin of the oil.
How do shadow fleet vessels avoid detection?
Shadow fleet tankers frequently switch off or manipulate their automatic identification system (AIS) during high-risk activities such as entering sanctioned ports or conducting illegal ship-to-ship transfers.
AIS transmits a ship’s identity, position, path and other details which helps other vessels and authorities to track their movement in real time.
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Disabling or tampering with AIS transponders makes it difficult to pinpoint a vessel’s location.
At times, shadow fleet vessels also “spoof” the global navigation satellite system. This means they broadcast false location data that makes them appear hundreds of miles away from where they really are.
These vessels frequently change their names, country of registration, and name of managing company. Some even operate under fraudulent flags.
In the maritime industry, vessel ownership structures can be extremely opaque, making it nearly impossible to trace the actual owner of a ship and those operating the tankers.
Why were the three vessels in question intercepted?
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Authorities tracked suspicious movements by all three tankers in January.
One of these vessels, MT Asphalt Star, was spotted near Pakistan’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) on January 20 and 21.
An EEZ refers to an area up to 200 nautical miles from a country’s coastline within which the country enjoys sovereign rights over natural resources.
All three ships allegedly switched off their AIS at various points and “spoofed” their location data.
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On February 4, the Coast Guard intercepted the MT Asphalt Star in the Arabian Sea over illegal ship-to-ship transfers.
And on February 9, the Coast Guard brought the MT AL Jafzia and MT Stellar Ruby to Mumbai anchorage.
A case was filed against the officials of the shipping companies and officers on the vessels on February 15 under multiple provisions including the Customs Act, Essential Commodities Act, Merchant Shipping Act and the Bhartiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
They were also found to have irregularities in their registration, flags and insurance.
What did these ships do?
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Authorities allege that MT Asphalt Star illegally transferred 30 metric tons of ‘heavy fuel oil’ oil to MT AL Jafzia and 5,473 metric tons of road construction bitumen to the MT Stellar Ruby.
These transfers allegedly took place in the Arabian Sea — within India’s EEZ — using forged documents and without informing authorities.
MT Stellar Ruby allegedly entered Karwar port in Karnataka and discharged its bitumen cargo using fake certificates. And the MT AL Jafzia accessed Gujarat’s Alang ship-breaking yard with forged documents.
The High Court was told that captains of the three vessels who were arrested in the case were granted bail by a different court.
Why did the seafarers approach the High Court?
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The crew approached the High Court on April 23 with a habeas corpus plea, saying they had been abandoned by shipowners after February 9.
They said the vessels had run out of fuel, electricity, food and drinking water, leaving them in “dead ship” conditions. Crew members alleged they each survived on 300 ml of drinking water everyday, had to resort to burning wood to cook food, and had not been paid wages.
They said they were not the “primary accused” in the case but were prevented from leaving the ships, amounting to “floating wrongful confinement” in subhuman conditions.
Meanwhile, the shipping companies — Balboa Shipping, Star Management Shipping and Royal Princess Shipping — had in March approached the Bombay HC seeking release of the vessels and sailing permission, even while the police case continued.
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Why did the court order the release of the sailors?
On April 29, the High Court observed that owners had “practically abandoned the vessels”. And on May 4, the bench of Justices Ravindra V Ghuge and Hiten S Venegavkar expressed concern over the wellbeing of the crew.
Though the ship owners expressed an apprehension that the vessels could not remain unmanned until replacements are available, the court ruled that the seafarers cannot be detained against their will. It has called them the victims of a “high-seas humanitarian crisis”.
