SBS has obtained what is thought to be the first photo of a boat that left India bound for Australia, carrying 153 Tamil asylum seekers.
The asylum seekers on board the boat were transferred to an Australian Navy vessel, where they remain while their fate is decided in the High Court.
The unverified photo shows the vessel before it left port in June.
Family members of those on board have told refugee advocates that the photo is of the vessel intercepted by Australian authorities late last month.
Sources have told SBS that the photo can not be confirmed because the boat is a different colour from the one that that asylum seekers say they were on when intercepted.
But members of Australia's Tamil community have told SBS that it's not uncommon for people smugglers to paint boats prior to departure, to avoid identification by authorities.
SBS presented Scott Morrison's office with a copy of the photo, but was told that the Immigration Minister wouldn't comment on the matter, as there was a High Court case pending.
Mr Morrison has in the past refused to comment on operational "on the water" issues.
The exact whereabouts of the boat has not been released to the public, though it is believed to be in the Indian Ocean somewhere between Australia and Sri Lanka.
SBS has spoken to a family member of another asylum seeker who is on the boat.
The man, who has asked for his identity not be revealed, says he hasn't been able to get in touch with his family members since they were intercepted by Australian authorities.
"I believe that the Australian Navy will look after them well, especially compared to our [Sri Lankan] navy," he told SBS.
An emergency High Court injunction was filed earlier this month to stop the boat from being taken to Sri Lanka, where the Tamil asylum seekers aboard originate.
The federal government made an undertaking to give 72 hours notice before directing the boat to Sri Lanka, but made no such undertakings for the processing of the asylum seekers in a third country, like Nauru or Papua New Guinea.
The High Court case, which may be heard by the full bench as early as Tuesday, comes after another boat carrying 41 asylum seekers was repatriated to Sri Lanka.
The full interview with the family member of one of the asylum seekers on board the Australian Navy vessel will be broadcast tonight at 8pm Eastern Time, on SBS's Tamil radio program.
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