"The assault and arrest of our fishermen is regretful. The Centre should prevail upon Lanka to release them immediately and warn Sri Lanka that bilateral ties will be affected if such arrests continue," PMK founder leader Dr S Ramadoss said in a statement today.
While 43 fishermen were held first, 23 more who were fishing nearby were also arrested, he said. The fishermen belong to Nagapattinam in Tamil Nadu and Karaikal in Puducherry.
The Indian fishermen were arrested by Sri Lankan naval personnel after an alleged clash with fishermen of the island nation yesterday.