Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Boats at centre of long-running battle will have to be removed as ruling on historic Cove Harbour is issued

Fisherman Jim Adam at Cove Harbour
Fisherman Jim Adam at Cove Harbour

Fishermen told of their devastation yesterday after being ordered to remove their boats from a historic north-east harbour following a four year legal battle.

Boats have been moored at Cove Harbour “throughout living memory” with generations of fishing enthusiasts using the scenic spot on the outskirts of the city.

But they have been locked in a long-running wrangle with landowner Pralhad Kolhe who owns parts of the site.

The dispute ended up in court earlier this year and a sheriff has now ruled in favour of the plastic surgeon who bought the land in 2001.

Decision to be made on the future of Cove Harbour

In his judgement, Sheriff Miller has ordered the owners of the boats to remove them as they have “no right” to “occupy and use” the land owned by Mr Kolhe.

The fishermen now have 28 days to remove their small fleet of traditional vessels and equipment from the harbour.

In his judgment Sheriff Miller said fishing activities had been shown to have been carried on from the harbour “throughout living memory and beyond”.

However, he found that the fishermen had stored boats there as past of a “local custom” with “no formal system” in place for the allocation of berths.

He said no permission had ever been sought by the locals for leaving their creel boats on Mr Kolhe’s land.

However, the sheriff also ruled that large boulders which were placed at the entrance to the harbour in 2015 by Mr Kolhe to prevent vehicular access must now also be removed within 28 days as they were obstructing a public right of way.

Jim Adam, the leader of the Cove Fisherman’s Association, said he was saddened by the news, but added he was pleased public access to the pier will be restored.

Mr Adam said: “It’s really disappointing to the fishermen, especially considering the centuries-old heritage of fishing we have here in Cove.

“We’ve never managed to have any dialogue with Mr Kolhe at all. We’ve tried on several occasions, via his solicitors, to try and find an amicable solution but he has refused on every occasion to talk to us.

“He has never really explained exactly why he wants us out of here. None of the guys have ever had the chance to talk to the fellow.

“But at least it’s good news for divers and kayakers and others who use the pier, because now they’ll be able to gain access again.”

Mr Kolhe declined to comment yesterday.

A brief history

Plastic surgeon Pralhad Kolhe bought his home, The Watch House, which overlooks the coastal site in 1992 and acquired further land, including the harbour, almost 10 years later.

He made his first request for the small boats to be removed from the harbour four years ago, but a group of about 10 traditional fishermen refused to leave – despite threats of legal action.

In response, Mr Kolhe erected a sign stating the harbour was private property.

In 2015, large boulders and other obstructions were placed across the pier, blocking access to vehicles and making it more difficult for the fishermen to properly use their boats.

Thousands of people signed a petition against the actions of Mr Kolhe, and a crowdfunder raised hundreds of pounds for the fishermen’s legal battle, which was launched in 2016.

The harbour has existed in more or less its current form since 1877, however fishermen in Cove have used the area to harvest the riches of the North Sea for centuries.