Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi urging New Delhi to initiate talks with Sri Lanka to regain control of Katchatheevu, a small island ceded to Colombo under a 1974 maritime agreement. Stalin argues that reclaiming the territory would offer a “lasting solution” to recurring arrests of Tamil Nadu fishermen by the Sri Lankan navy and protect their traditional fishing rights. Stalin’s letter follows an all-party resolution passed by the Tamil Nadu Assembly on 2 April calling for the island’s retrieval. Addressing a state event, he criticised the BJP-led federal government for allegedly failing to act on the issue during its 11 years in power and accused it of politicising the dispute instead of safeguarding fishermen. The BJP rejected the charges, noting the island was transferred when the Congress-led Union government, supported by the DMK, signed the 1974 agreement. Party spokespersons said the Modi administration has reduced violent incidents at sea and defended fishermen in international waters, contrasting the record with earlier Congress governments.