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This is an archive article published on February 23, 2000

Two ISI agents nabbed with Defence documents

AMRITSAR, FEB 22: The chance arrest of two Pakistani nationals from the Samjhauta Express and seizure of sensitive Indian defence document...

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AMRITSAR, FEB 22: The chance arrest of two Pakistani nationals from the Samjhauta Express and seizure of sensitive Indian defence documents may bust what appears to a big espionage racket, running for more than two decades with possible involvement of some Army men.

The Pakistani spies – Kammaludin and Mumtaz Ali – were caught during the customs hunt at the Attari railway station on Monday evening for fake Indian currency. The Customs inspector in charge, an ex-Army man, detected the defence documents from the bottom cavity of the travelling bag of Kammaludin.

During interrogation, Kammaludin confessed to having an accomplice in the train who had crossed over to platform No 3 where the connecting train to Delhi is stationed, after obtaining immigration and customs clearance. The Customs authorities swung into action and nabbed him from the connecting train he had already boarded. Some Defence documents were also recovered from his possession. He had been recently inducted by Kammaludin into spying.

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The documents referring to "Taq hdq" were considered highly sensitive by intelligence agencies. Informed sources said he was to deliver the documents to his Indian contact in Agra and Delhi. Intelligence sources did not rule out the possibility of arrest of some Army men on the basis of theinformation given by the two Pakistani nationals during interrogation.

Kammaludin has been working as Pakistani spy since 1970 and he had visited Pakistan four to five times on a fake Indian passport. Two fake passports were also recovered from his possession. Both were working for the geographical wing of the Pakistani Army, intelligence sources disclosed. They were supposed to deliver coded information to the Indian contacts for a secret operation. The suspects had also revealed names of their contacts.

During interrogation, Kammaludin is reported to have confessed that he had prepared fake Indian passports for many Pakistani nationals who were involved in unscrupulous activities across the border. He disclosed that their modus operandi was to run petty business around cantonment areas and establish contacts in Defence circles.

Kamaluddin told interrogators that they had instructions from the Pakistani army to recruit handicapped Muslims into the espionage racket for carrying documents from India.

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The two have been handed over to the General Railway Police (GRP) and a case under the Passport Act has been registered at the Attari GRP post. They would be produced in court on Wednesday. Further interrogation will be done at the joint interrogation centre here after obtaining police remand.

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