Cracking down on suspects linked to the 2021 Visakhapatnam Pakistan spy case, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) conducted extensive searches at three locations in Gujarat and Maharashtra on 29 June 2024, Friday. The operation targeted the residences of individuals suspected of receiving money from Pakistan to spy on Indian defence establishments. According to an NIA release, the teams seized several incriminating materials, including mobile phones and documents. These materials are currently under examination to uncover further connections in the espionage case.
The Visakhapatnam Pakistani ISI espionage case revolved around the leakage of classified defence-related information through a Pakistani ISI spying network. Initially filed by the Counter Intelligence Cell of Andhra Pradesh on January 12, 2021, the case was filed under sections 120 B (criminal conspiracy) and 121A (Conspiring to commit certain offences against the State) of the Indian Penal Code, sections 17 and 18 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967, and section 3 of Official Secrets Act, 1923.
The NIA took over the investigation in June 2023 and filed its first chargesheet on July 19, 2023, against two accused, one of whom is an absconding Pakistani national. Subsequent chargesheets were filed against three more suspects, including another Pakistani national.
Investigations have revealed that Pakistani nationals were collaborating with the arrested individuals in a scheme to leak sensitive information about the Indian Navy. This conspiracy was part of a broader plan to incite terrorist violence in India, the NIA stated.
The previous arrest, in November 2023, was made against Amaan Salim Shaikh from Mumbai. Shaikh was found involved in the activation of SIM cards that were being used by Pakistani intelligence officers involved in the racket. At the time, NIA teams seized two mobile phones from the location where Shaikh was arrested, while two more mobile phones and a host of sensitive documents were seized from other locations during the raid.
In relation to the Visakhapatnam Pakistan spy case, the NIA had filed a chargesheet on July 2023 against two accused, including an absconding Pakistani national, Meer Balaj Khan. Investigations had revealed that Khan and other arrested accused Akash Solanki were part of an espionage module procuring and leaking sensitive vital information pertaining to the Indian Navy to Pakistan-based handlers, as per the statement.
Further details regarding the latest extensive searches conducted are still awaited.
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