Espionage case: Recovered files give details of BSF deployment in Sir Creek, says Delhi Police

Cops zero in on Ashiq Ali, who is likely to have forged Aadhaar card for Akhtar

Soheb was brought to Delhi on Friday. Praveen Khanna

A detailed investigation of the nearly 67 classified documents which have been recovered from Ramzan Khan and Subhash Jangir, arrested in connection with the espionage ring, have revealed that the documents detail the deployment of Border Security Force (BSF) at Sir Creek, a 96-km tidal estuary along the border of India and Pakistan as well as Kutch areas, police said.

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Even as Soheb, the third accused, was brought to Delhi from Jodhpur in Rajasthan and placed under arrest, sources privy to the probe said police have zeroed in on one Ashiq Hussain Ali, who is likely to have forged the Aadhaar card for Mahmood Akhtar.

Police, who have launched a hunt to nab Ali, have found out that he is a resident of Gandhi Nagar in east Delhi even though he had told Akhtar that he lived in Chandni Chowk.

Akhtar, a Pakistan High Commission staffer, was declared ‘persona non-grata’ for receiving “sensitive” defence documents, including details of BSF deployment on the border, from Khan and Jangir. Akhtar had lured the duo to work for him as spies in lieu of money.

During interrogation, Khan and Jangir have revealed that they used to get Rs 50,000 from Akhtar for providing him with information. They also said that they used to procure information from the Army for a sum of Rs 15,000 to Rs 20,000.

Ravindra Yadav, Joint Commissioner of Police (crime), said Shoaib used to stay in hotels in Paharganj and Chandni Chowk whenever he used to come to Delhi.

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“He is a visa agent working in Gujarat and Rajasthan. He was in touch with the Pakistan High Commission. He has gone to Pakistan six times as his paternal grandparents stay there. He was close to Khan and Jangir. We will bring the three face to face,” said Yadav.

“We have recovered a tablet from his possession. He had tried to destroy it but we are trying to retrieve the data,” he added.

Police added that Shoaib was the one who brought Khan and Jangir to Delhi and fixed their meeting with Akhtar. It has also been learnt that Soheb’s father was also a visa agent who had sent several people from Rajasthan to Pakistan.

Mahender Singh Manral

Mahender Singh Manral is an Assistant Editor with the national bureau of The Indian Express. He is known for his impactful and breaking stories. He covers the Ministry of Home Affairs, Investigative Agencies, National Investigative Agency, Central Bureau of Investigation, Law Enforcement Agencies, Paramilitary Forces, and internal security. Prior to this, Manral had extensively reported on city-based crime stories along with that he also covered the anti-corruption branch of the Delhi government for a decade. He is known for his knack for News and a detailed understanding of stories. He also worked with Mail Today as a senior correspondent for eleven months. He has also worked with The Pioneer for two years where he was exclusively covering crime beat. During his initial days of the career he also worked with The Statesman newspaper in the national capital, where he was entrusted with beats like crime, education, and the Delhi Jal Board. A graduate in Mass Communication, Manral is always in search of stories that impact lives. ... Read More

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