Visakhapatnam Pakistan Spy case: NIA makes third arrest during raids in Mumbai, Assam
Amaan Salim Shaikh was arrested from Mumbai following raids conducted by the NIA on Monday at two locations in Mumbai (Maharashtra) and another at Hojai, Nagaon district, Assam
By Newsmeter Network Published on 20 Nov 2023 3:07 PM GMT
Hyderabad: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Monday arrested one more accused in the Visakhapatnam espionage case involving leakage of classified defence information through a Pakistani ISI spying network.
Amaan Salim Shaikh was arrested from Mumbai following raids conducted by the NIA on Monday at two locations in Mumbai (Maharashtra) and another at Hojai, Nagaon district, Assam. With his arrest, the total number of persons arrested in the case so far stands at three. A total of four persons, including two absconding Pakistani operatives, have already been chargesheeted by the NIA in the case.
Accused of activating SIM cards
Amaan was found involved in the activation of the SIM cards that were being used by the Pakistani Intelligence Officers involved in the racket, which first came to light in 2021, when the Counter Intelligence Cell of Andhra Pradesh, registered the case as on January 12, 2021, under sections 120 B and 121A of the IPC and sections 17 and 18 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 and Section 3 of Official Secrets Act, 1923. The NIA took over the case in June 2023.
NIA teams on Monday also seized two mobile phones from the location from which Amaan was arrested. Two more mobile phones and a host of sensitive documents were seized from other locations raided by the NIA.
Absconding Pakistani national
On July 19, 2023, the NIA filed a chargesheet against two accused, including an absconding Pakistani national, Meer Balaj Khan. Investigations had revealed that Meer Balaj Khan, along with an arrested accused, identified as Akash Solanki, were part of an espionage module who were procuring and leaking sensitive vital information pertaining to the Indian Navy to Pakistan-based handlers.
On November 6 the same year, the NIA had filed a supplementary chargesheet against two other accused persons, identified as Manmohan Surendra Panda and Alven. While Panda is under arrest, Alven, a Pakistani Intelligence Operative, is absconding, as heās based in Pakistan.
Investigations are continuing in the case and custodial interrogation of Amaan is expected to yield more leads in the conspiracy relating to attempts by foreign-based elements to obtain sensitive and classified information relating to defence establishments across the country.
