The police had questioned the crew of the US-owned ship on Monday with armed guards aboard, accused of illegally transporting weapons and ammunition in Indian waters.

The Deputy National Security Adviser Nehchal Sandhu, here on Tuesday said he did not think that the American ship, detained by National Coast Guard off Tamil Nadu coast for carrying arms, was involved in gunrunning.

“I don’t think so it was involved in gunrunning,” he said adding that it is likely to be owned by a private maritime security company. Some media reports have said a US-based anti-piracy company owns it.

“The captain of the ship did not declare the arms to customs... Now, the process of law will begin,” he told reporters on the sidelines of a function. The police would have to find out if it carried valid documents for weapons, he said.

The vessel was intercepted by the Indian Coast Guard about 15 nautical miles east of Tuticorin on October 12. Security forces seized 31 assault rifles and around 5,000 rounds of ammunition from the MV Seaman Ohio.

MV Seaman Guard Ohio, might be involved in gun-running, Sandhi said

He said local police would take a decision on the ship its fate after investigation.

The ship, whose crew included eight Indians, was intercepted and detained by the Indian Coast Guard about 15 nautical miles east of Tuticorin on Saturday.

An FIR has been registered against 10 crew members and 25 guards of the detained ship by the Tamil Nadu Marine Police for illegally carrying arms and ammunition.

Besides, a case under the Essential Commodities Act has been registered for buying 1,500 litres of diesel illegally with the help of a local shipping agent.

The 35 persons who were on board the ship, including its crew, have been booked for illegally carrying weapons and ammunition. The ship had 10 crew members and 25 armed security guards from India, Britain, Estonia, and Ukraine, coast guard officials said. Eight of its members are Indians.

Coast guard official Santosh Kumar Singh said the ship is owned by a Virginia-based security company, AdvanFort, but is registered in Sierra Leone.

Tuticorin district collector M Ravi Kumar on Monday made a spot assessment of the ship. 'A report has already been sent to the government by the police and on Tuesday, I have a meeting with the superintendent of police on this issue,' he said.

The police said the ship's captain told investigators that AdvanFort provides armed escorts to merchant vessels travelling in pirate-infested waters in the Indian Ocean. AdvanFort could not immediately be reached for comment.

Singh said the ship's crew told the coast guard that documents for the weapons were with the company. The police said they filed the complaint after the crew failed to produce the documents over two days.

India is very sensitive about the presence of armed security guards on merchant ships after the shooting deaths of two fishermen by armed Italian marines last year.

The marines were part of a military security team on a cargo ship when they fired at the fishermen, mistaking them for pirates. The two Italians are facing trial in India for the deaths.