Nearly three weeks after the 28-year-old Liberian-flagged MSC ELSA 3 capsized about 25 km southwest of Alappuzha while en route from Vizhinjam port to Kochi, the Kerala Police have registered a criminal case against global shipping company MSC, the ship’s owner, master, and crew.
The vessel, which sank on May 24 carrying over 600 containers, including hazardous cargo and large quantities of marine diesel, has sparked environmental and safety concerns.
The FIR, filed at the Fort Kochi coastal police station based on a complaint by C. Shamji from a fishing village in Alappuzha, includes charges under Sections 282 (rash navigation), 285 (dangerous obstruction in navigation), 286 (negligent handling of poisonous substances), 287 (negligent conduct with fire or combustible matter), 288 (negligent handling of explosives), and 3(5) (common intention by multiple persons) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
According to the FIR, the ship’s master and crew, despite being aware of the dangerous and inflammable cargo onboard, navigated the vessel in a “very negligent manner,” endangering life and property.
Several containers from the Liberia-flagged MSC ELSA 3 were washed ashore along the Kerala coast, while waves deposited nurdles (plastic pellets) along coastal areas of Kollam and Thiruvananthapuram, and small oil slicks were reported off Alappuzha, triggering ecological concerns.
The hazardous materials released from the sunken ship reportedly damaged the environment, affected the fishing sector, and the fallen containers allegedly obstructed the shipping channel used by other vessels.
The ruling Communist Party of India (Marxist)-led government in Kerala, headed by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, has come under fire after the incident, with the Opposition and fishermen’s organisations criticising it for its reluctance to register a case against the shipping company.
Kerala Congress Chief Sunny Joseph accused Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan of shielding shipping firms and failing to take maritime accidents seriously, particularly after another incident involving a Singapore-flagged vessel catching fire off the Kerala coast on June 11, 2025.
Environmental groups like Friends of the Earth and Greenpeace India have criticized the lack of transparency in cargo manifests and the absence of an oil spill contingency plan, especially given Kerala’s 640 km coastline.
