The 31 May suspension order issued by the Seamen’s Employment Office, affiliated to the D G Shipping, follows an enquiry into the 17 April 2018 death of Sanjay Chaudhary, Chief Engineer on board Hong Kong-flagged ship M T Atlantic Olive, when the ship managed by Anglo Eastern was enroute Cape Verde Islands from Malta
The Directorate General of Shipping, India’s maritime regulator, has handed a three-year suspension to Anglo Eastern Ship Management (India) Pvt Ltd, the Indian unit of one of the world’s top ship management firms based in Hong Kong, for violating the recruitment and placement service rules of seafarers.
The enquiry concluded several violations by Anglo Eastern Ship Management of the Merchant Shipping (Recruitment and Placement Service) Rules, 2016 relating to the incident. changes
“lt is established that there is negligence of the Master of the vessel, Capt. Santosh Achuthan. He has the duty as Master to save the life of seafarer onboard as he has 4 hours 25 minutes of golden time which he failed to use diligently, thus caused the death of Late Shri Sanjay Chaudhary,” the order suspending the license of Anglo Eastern Shipmanagement said.
As per enquiry report regarding the death of Late shri Sanjay Chaudhary submitted by Chief Medical Officer, Ghaziabad to Collector, Ghaziabad, there was cyanosis and prime facie evidence of poisoning, there is substantial evidence to suggest that the death of Mr Sanjay Chaudhary may have been caused as a result of combined effect of Asphyxia and Poisoning. The State Medico Legal Cell, Aishbagh, Lucknow, (U.P) also opined that this is the manner of death asphyxia due to airways obstructions rather than shock, myocardial infarction or Hyperthyroidism, the order said.
It said that Anglo Eastern Ship Management violated several rules in the engagement of Late Sanjay Chaudhary on board Atlantic Olive while suspending its license for three years.
The order also recommended “necessary action” against Captain Santosh Achuthan, the master of the ship, for incompetency, omission or commission of such acts which led to personal injury, death of Late Sanjay Chaudhary.
The order further said that the liabilities of the seafarers already recruited by the RPSL company and presently on-board ships managed by it shall continue to be with Anglo Eastern Ship Management (India).
“The incident surrounding the death of Chief Engineer Sanjay Chaudhary ideally called for a complete ban on Anglo Eastern Ship Management (India), which employs more than 20,000 seafarers on the ships it manages globally. The company, though, has been let off the hook with a three-year suspension. The company also has the right to appeal to the Principal Officer, Mercantile Marine Department against the suspension order,” the industry source said.
“Yet the order conveys a strong and clear message to RPSL companies that you cannot play with the lives of seafarers,” the industry source said.
Commenting on the order, Vineet Gupta, Managing Director, Anglo Eastern Ship Management (India) said: “It is now being alleged that we are prohibited from operating due to a license issue. To be clear, we can confirm that we are discussing this matter with the Directorate of Seamen’s Employment arising from an on-going case involving the natural death of a senior officer on board one of our managed vessels in 2018”.
“We are legally prohibited from commenting on the case, however, we have fully cooperated with all relevant authorities since 2018 and we are absolutely certain that we will be able to continue to perform Indian manning services on behalf of many of the world’s largest and most reputed international shipping companies. In the meantime, rest assured that our operations remain business as usual. The on-going discussions does not impact our day-to-day operations, our seafarers ashore or on board, or the continuity of the employment of seafarers and their confirmed joining schedules. We remain, as always, committed to the safety and well-being of all our seafarers and their families and look to a quick resolution”, Gupta added.
“The recent order against Anglo Eastern Ship Management is historic in the shipping industry of India. Also, in this action, it is clear that the maritime administration allegedly indulged in corruption and partiality. The act of giving two RPSL licenses to a company is against the RPSL rules. Likewise, this order is further proof that DG Shipping has allegedly colluded with monopoly companies for their illegal activities against seafarers. This order has given justice to the deceased seafarer’s family,” said Ravi Veetil, National President, Sailors Union of India (SUI-BMS).
Anglo Eastern Ship Management RPSL Cancelled / Suspended – Big Setback for AESM
DG Shipping on 1/06/2023 Suspended the RPSL of Anglo Eastern Ship Management details of which are present in below mentioned official DSEO Order dated 31-05-2023
DG Shipping RPSL Order – DSEO Order dated 31/05/2023
In view of RPSL Company M/S Anglo Eastern Ship Mgmt. (t) Pvt. Ltd, RPS License bearing No’RPSL-MUM-088 is suspended for 03 years with immediate effect under the Rule 12 of Merchant Shipping (Recruitment and Placement Service) Rules, 2016. However, the liabilities of the seafarers already recruited and presently on-board by the RPSL Company shall continue to be with M/s Anglo Eastern Ship Mgmt. (1) Pvt. Ltd, RPSL-MUM-088. The Bank Guarantee in original is withheld by this office for the said purpose.
DG Shipping RPSL Order – DSEO Order dated 31/05/2023
Read Full Story Here: https://theseaholic.com/anglo-eastern-ship-management-rpsl-cancelled-big-setback-for-aesm/
About The case – Chief Engineer Sanjay Murder Case Vs Anglo eastern Ship Management
Anglo Eastern Chief Engineer Sanjay Chaudhary Murder Case – AESM RPSL Suspended
On 16 April 2018, Sanjay Chaudhary, chief engineer at the Anglo-Eastern shipping company, spoke to his wife for the last time. “Something horrible” was being conspired against him, he is said to have told her.
A day later, his wife was informed that Chaudhary, 45, died of cardiac arrest while he was on duty on the ship — a claim she refused to buy. Now, in a complaint to the CBI chief, Chaudhary’s wife, a Ghaziabad-based government employee, has alleged foul play.
To Know full details about this Case, Read Here
Major Protest against Suspension of RPSL Anglo Eastern Ship Management by NUSI & Indian Seafarers
NUSI – Indian Seafarers Protest against Suspension/Cancellation of Anglo Eastern RPSL
The Director, Seamens Employment Office, Mumbai has issued a circular no MMDMUM-14011(14)/1/2022-SEO/535/2023 dated 31st May, 2023. While we sympathise with the subject issue detailed in the said circular, the National Union of Seafarers of India (NUSI) strongly registers our protest on the suspension of the license of M/s Anglo-Eastern Ship Management.
As stated NUSI has always supported a proper inquiry in the matter, but the suspension of the licence is very harsh, arbitrary and uncalled for. We are extremely worried that this will directly result in loss of job of more than 20.000 Indian seafarers, in addition to tarnishing the collective image of reputed manning agents who operate from India.
The damage is already done by this irresponsible circular. Who is going to provide jobs to these 20,000 Indian seafarers who will be put to lot of hardships for no fault of theirs. This will have serious repercussions, including political fallout, which the Ministry of Shipping will have to resolve. Surely there should have been a better way to deal with the situation rather than the suspension of the company which has been awarded Best Foreign Employer Award of Indian Seafarers more than a dozen times at the National Maritime Day.
We demand recalling of the damaging circular. NUSI protest is only regarding the suspension and reiterate that the enquiry into the subject matter should be conducted to take it to its logical conclusion.
Below is the Official statement from NUSI – National union Seafarers of India
Anglo Eastern Reply to Indian Seafarers Regarding RPSL Suspension case
Anglo Eastern on 01-June-2023 came up with a Official Announcement for its employees and seafarers to be Calm in this Chaotic situation and clarified the following:
Anglo-Eastern has more than 20,000 Indian officers and crew presently in our employment. Our commitment to the employment, training, and wellbeing of Indian seafarers goes back 30 years and has been acknowledged many times over in the past three decades, most recently at the 2023 National Maritime Day Awards, where we were proud to be named the top foreign employer of Indian seafarers by the Directorate General of Shipping.
It is now being alleged that we are prohibited from operating due to a license issue. To be clear we can confirm that we are discussing this matter with the Directorate of Seamen’s Employment arising from an ongoing case involving the natural death of a senior officer on board one of our managed vessels in 2018. We are legally prohibited from commenting on the case, however, we have fully cooperated with all relevant authorities since 2018 and we are absolutely certain that we will be able to continue to perform Indian manning services on behalf of many of the world’s largest and most reputed international shipping companies.
In the meantime, rest assured that our operations remain business as usual. The ongoing discussion does not impact our day-to-day operations, our seafarers ashore or on board, or the continuity of the employment of seafarers and their confirmed joining schedules. We remain, as always, committed to the safety and wellbeing of all our seafarers and their families and look to a quick resolution.
Source:
- https://theseaholic.com/anglo-eastern-chief-engineer-sanjay-chaudhary-murder-case-aesm-rpsl-suspended/
- https://theseaholic.com/anglo-eastern-ship-management-rpsl-cancelled-big-setback-for-aesm/
- https://theseaholic.com/major-protest-against-suspension-of-rpsl-anglo-eastern-ship-management-by-nusi-indian-seafarers/