NEW DELHI, JANUARY 3: Close on the heels of the hijacking of the Indian Airlines plane, a Pakistani embassy official was arrested in Kathmandu today for passing off counterfeit Indian currency to a local police decoy.Asim Saboor, an assistant secretary in the visa section of the Pakistan embassy was caught "red-handed" while passing off counterfeit Indian currency of the face value of Rs 50,000 yesterday, according to Nepalese daily Kathmandu Post which said it was part of a massive fake Indian currency ring here.Commenting on the arrest, an external affairs ministry spokesman here said the Indian authorities had brought to the notice of the Nepalese authorities that it was part of a link of subversive activities Pakistani mission was indulging in Nepal.Quoting senior Nepalese police officers, the Kathmandu Post said the police recovered fake Indian bank notes totalling Rs 50,000 in crisp Rs 500 denominations.Officials said the quality of fake notes was "such that it could only beprinted in security presses", in an apparent hint that Pakistan was indulging in massive printing of fake notes to abet its terrorist activities against India.Sources said the same Pakistani embassy official had earlier been visiting Sikh extremist Lakhbir Singh from whom Nepalese police had recovered 20 kg of RDX in a raid in his hotel room in November.Giving details of the arrest, the paper said the accused Saboor was suspected of stashing millions of fake currency notes in his rented house located in less than 100 metres east of the residence of Nepalese foreign minister Dr R Sharan Mahat.The paper said the Pakistani ambassador and other senior officials of the embassy had tried to stall the arrest and search of Saboor claiming he had diplomatic immunity.The stand-off between the Nepalese police and Pakistani embassy officials continued throughout Sunday night with local police arresting Saboor after ascertaining that he had no diplomatic status.
