Pakistan’s Inter-Providers Intelligence (ISI) has been using people below the affect of medicine or posing as mentally disturbed to infiltrate India and ship essential messages to incarcerated terrorists, in line with a report by PTI. Safety businesses have detected greater than 10 such instances since July this yr, involving Pakistani nationals coming into India from Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.
Modus Operandi of ISI
Chatting with information company PTI, officers saidthese infiltrators function couriers tasked with relaying essential communication to jailed terrorists in Indian prisons. These people usually exhibit uncommon conduct and supply superficial particulars throughout questioning, elevating suspicions amongst safety personnel. Interrogations reveal that they’re educated to withstand intense questioning, suggesting the involvement of high-level handlers.
An official defined, “The usage of cell phones and the web leaves digital footprints. To keep away from this, ISI seems to have adopted these unconventional ways, counting on human couriers as a substitute.”
Among the many reported incidents, people apprehended in Jammu, Punjab, and Rajasthan prisons are believed to be a part of this bigger community. Notable instances embrace:
The Minor from Attock: In July, a minor from Pakistan’s Attock district was intercepted in Punjab. Safety personnel discovered a humid paper with Arabic writing in his possession, although it was illegible.
Bijnour Incident: A Pakistani nationwide from Bijnour village in Rajasthan, posing as mentally disturbed, revealed throughout questioning that he had been employed by Pakistani drug lords Sarfaraz Johiya and Nawaz to smuggle narcotics into India and collect intelligence on Border Safety Pressure (BSF) deployments.
Mohammed Asad: In one other case, Mohammed Asad, a youth from Lahore, drove to the India-Pakistan border on his motorbike and awaited arrest by the BSF. Initially claiming a household dispute over his girlfriend, officers suspect Asad acted as a courier.
Shahid Imran: In October, a 31-year-old man recognized as Shahid Imran entered India through the Jammu sector, claiming he wished to go to a Kali temple to get married. Officers are investigating his true intent.
The ISI’s reliance on couriers will not be new. Within the late 1990s and early 2000s, it exploited the Samjhauta Categorical, the rail hyperlink between India and Pakistan, to smuggle medication and funds for terrorist actions in Jammu and Kashmir and Punjab. This apply, facilitated by so-called “sawari operators,” ended with the suspension of the prepare service in February 2019 after heightened tensions between the 2 nations.
Officers observe that the current ways bear a putting resemblance to those previous strategies. “The ISI is revisiting outdated methods with new diversifications to evade safety forces,” stated a senior official.
Infiltrators are usually booked below the Foreigners Act and Passports Act, which carry jail phrases of two to eight years. Following their sentences, they’re deported. Authorities at the moment are looking for prolonged custody for a lot of of those people to probe deeper into their connections and handlers.
The ISI’s infiltration ways are intently tied to drug smuggling operations, which offer monetary help for terrorist networks. Safety forces stay on excessive alert, coordinating efforts to counteract these rising threats.
The instances underscore the evolving methods of cross-border espionage and the necessity for vigilance alongside India’s borders. As an official summarized, “This isn’t nearly people crossing over; it’s a calculated effort to destabilize India’s safety framework and assist terrorist networks.”
