NIA conducts searches at four locations in Gujarat and Maharashtra in Andhra Pradesh espionage case

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) officials on Thursday conducted searches at four locations in Gujarat and Maharashtra in connection with the case related to the involvement of Pakistani Agents in espionage activities in India. The investigations into the case which was registered by the NIA last year, had revealed that they had conspired with other accused persons based in Visakhapatnam, Mumbai, Gujarat for gathering sensitive information for conducting terror acts in India. During the searches, digital devices, suspicious SIM cards and incriminating documents have been seized, the agency officials said.

According to the NIA sources, in January 2020, Counter Intelligence Cell of Andhra Pradesh police had registered a case against 20 persons for their alleged involvement in establishing communication with some unidentified foreign intelligence officers/agents using a foreign telephone number and for entering into a criminal conspiracy to transmit crucial and prohibited information connected with the Eastern and Western seacoasts of India particularly of the places like Visakhapatnam, Nellore, parts of Gujarat etc, which are official secrets, to hostile intelligence agencies of Pakistan during 2014-20. The case was re-registered by the NIA in December last year.

"One of the accused Altaf Harun Ghanchi was allegedly involved in supplying five Indian mobile numbers and shared OTPs to Pakistani intelligence officers for WhatsApp communication through Indian mobile numbers and these WhatsApp accounts with Indian numbers were being used by Pakistani intelligence agents to establish contact with defence personnel to elicit sensitive information related to vital installations. 41 mobile phones, including 03 mobile phones of Navy personnel have been seized in the case earlier. Searches were conducted in Godhra and Buldana at the premises of suspects in connection with the case on Thursday," said an NIA official.

"Information was being obtained from few Indian Security Forces personnel and also civilians, through internet based Social Media platforms like Facebook, WhatsApp etc by using foreign telephone numbers bearing name Pal Ammar alias Ammar Hussain alias Ali Akbar as well as Indian telephone numbers. During the period 2014-2020, some unidentified Pakistani Intelligence Officers or Agents using a Pakistani telephone number had established communication with some of the suspected persons, who are the personnel working in the BSF/CRPF and also with civilians in India," the official said.