India on Tuesday registered a strong protest with Sri Lanka in Delhi and Colombo over the Lankan navy firing at Indian fishermen near Delft Island.

According to the external affairs ministry, five fishermen were injured in the firing and two of them are serious.

The Sri Lankan acting high commissioner in New Delhi was called to the external affairs ministry and a strong protest was lodged over the incident, the ministry said in a statement. The Indian high commission in Colombo also raised the matter with the Lankan ministry of foreign affairs.

The Indian ministry said the Sri Lankan navy opened fire while apprehending 13 Indian fishermen in the proximity of Delft Island in the early hours of Tuesday.

Of the 13 fishermen who were on board the fishing vessel, two have suffered serious injuries and are receiving treatment at the Jaffna Teaching Hospital. Indian consulate officials in Jaffna have visited the injured fishermen at the hospital.

The ministry said India had always emphasised the need to treat issues of fishermen humanely, keeping in mind livelihood concerns.

“The use of force is not acceptable under any circumstances whatsoever. Existing understandings between the two governments inthis regard must be strictly observed,” it said. Fishermen straying into each other’swaters is a long-standing issue.

Lankan newspaper Daily Mirror reported that at least two Indian fishermen suffered gunshot injuries and 11 others were arrested during aconfrontation with the Lankan navy off Kankesanthirai early on Tuesday.

The newspaper said police received a complaint from an officer of the Northern Naval Command that a group of Indian fishermen were illegally fishing in Sri Lankan waters, violating sea boundaries.

“According to the complaint, while attempting to apprehend the fishermen, an altercation occurred between an Indian fisherman and a navy officer. During the confrontation, the officer’s duty firearm was inadvertently discharged, resulting in gunshot injuries to two fishermen, who were shot in the legs,” the Daily Mirror reported.