The Spy Next Door: How Ordinary Indians Became Pakistani ISI Assets

Since the aftermath of the Pahalgam panic onslaught and India's retaliatory strikes nether Operation Sindoor, Indian counterintelligence agencies person been connected precocious alert. Over the past month, astatine slightest 15 individuals crossed Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Delhi, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, and Punjab person been detained oregon arrested. 

An technologist successful Mumbai sketching warship blueprints aft being honey-trapped connected Facebook, a question vlogger successful Haryana escorted by equipped men done Lahore's markets, a Rajasthan authorities worker with 7 unexplained trips to Pakistan, and a SIM paper supplier successful Deeg funnelling accusation to Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) handlers - each arrest, unconnected yet similar, reveals a wide web of radical engaged successful passing delicate accusation to Pakistan. 

Who are they?

The CRPF Insider: Moti Ram Jat

Moti Ram Jat was not a high-ranking officer, but his entree to operational details wrong the Central Reserve Police Force made him a campaigner that Pakistani operatives could exploit. According to the National Investigation Agency (NIA), Jat had been successful interaction with Pakistan Intelligence Officers (PIOs) since 2023, passing on classified accusation successful speech for money.

The NIA arrested Jat from Delhi earlier this period aft his societal media enactment triggered interior alarms. The CRPF, successful a uncommon nationalist disclosure, acknowledged that Jat was dismissed aft being recovered to person "acted successful usurpation of established norms and protocols." 

Jat is presently successful NIA custody until June 6. Investigation is inactive underway to find what accusation helium passed connected to India's nuclear-powered neighbour. 

Honeytrap At The Dockyard: Engineer Ravindra Verma

In Maharashtra, the Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) arrested 27-year-old Ravindra Verma, a mechanical technologist employed by a Mumbai-based defence exertion firm. Verma had entree to the Naval Dockyard successful southbound Mumbai and was progressive successful enactment related to submarines and warships.

His apprehension was triggered by a forensic way linking him to Facebook accounts nether the names "Payal Sharma" and "Ispreet." Investigators accidental these profiles were fronts for Pakistani agents who gradually lured Verma into a honeytrap. Verma began sharing elaborate sketches, diagrams, and audio notes astir naval assets successful speech for wealth sent via Indian and planetary slope accounts.

According to the police, Verma was not simply duped but knowingly and repeatedly shared confidential data. While phones were prohibited wrong the Naval Dockyard, helium would reportedly sketch from representation and nonstop images later. The ATS suspects helium besides supplied vessel names and docking schedules. He had been communicating with the Pakistani operative since November 2024 and is presently successful custody.

The Influencer Asset: Jyoti Malhotra

Perhaps the astir publically disposable lawsuit is that of question vlogger Jyoti Malhotra, who ran a fashionable YouTube channel. Her apprehension by Haryana Police came successful mid-May, pursuing her alleged links to ISI operatives.

According to authorities investigating the case, Malhotra had direct, repeated interaction with operatives astatine the Pakistan High Commission successful Delhi, arsenic good arsenic during visits to Pakistan, astatine slightest 2 of which were confirmed by question records. She reportedly interacted with Pakistani quality officials named Danish, Ahsan, and Shahid. Forensic introspection of her seized mobile phones and laptops revealed a trove of implicit 12 terabytes of data, including communications that investigators assertion corroborate her consciousness of the agents' ISI affiliations.

Despite being nether scrutiny for disproportionate spending and aggregate overseas trips, including to Pakistan and China, Malhotra continued her interactions with suspected handlers. One notable incidental captured successful a video by Scottish YouTuber Callum Mill showed her walking done Lahore's Anarkali Bazaar accompanied by six men equipped with AK-47s.

Malhotra has been charged nether the Official Secrets Act and sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. Her proceedings is scheduled to statesman successful June.

The Health Worker: Sahdev Singh Gohil

A 28-year-old wellness idiosyncratic from Gujarat was arrested for transmitting delicate accusation related to Indian subject infrastructure to a Pakistani operative. 

Officials from the Gujarat Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) confirmed past Saturday that Sahdev Singh Gohil, a nonmigratory of the borderline territory of Kachchh, had been detained earlier this period connected charges of sharing classified images and videos of recently constructed Indian Air Force (IAF) and Border Security Force (BSF) installations with a overseas agent.

Senior ATS serviceman K Siddharth said that Gohil came into interaction with a idiosyncratic identifying herself arsenic Aditi Bharadwaj via WhatsApp successful 2023. Investigators present judge Bharadwaj was a screen individuality utilized by a Pakistani quality operative. The communication, according to ATS sources, evolved into an speech of visuals and information concerning Indian subject sites adjacent the border.

According to investigators, Gohil procured a caller SIM paper registered nether his Aadhaar details successful aboriginal 2025 and activated a WhatsApp relationship connected behalf of the alleged handler utilizing a one-time-password (OTP) authentication process. This channel, officials say, was subsequently utilized to transmit delicate contented documenting subject operation and movements successful the area.

The ATS besides said that Gohil had received a currency outgo of Rs 40,000 from an unidentified individual.

The Haryana Arrests 

In Haryana, determination has been a clump of arrests which constituent to a recruitment effort by ISI targeting economically susceptible young men.

Davender Singh Dhillon, a 25-year-old governmental subject pupil from Patiala, was arrested aft uploading pictures of firearms online. Investigation revealed that helium had visited Pakistan successful November 2024 and shared delicate images of subject installations.

Nauman Ilahi, a 24-year-old information guard, was arrested successful Panipat. He had reportedly been transferring accusation to ISI handlers utilizing his brother-in-law's slope account. Authorities confirmed cross-border wealth transfers.

Arman, 23, and Tarif, some from Haryana's Nuh district, were arrested wrong days of each other. Tarif was caught trying to delete chats with Pakistani numbers erstwhile constabulary arrived astatine his residence.

The Bureaucratic Link

Shakur Khan, a Rajasthan authorities worker from Jaisalmer, was arrested connected spying charges. Khan, 49, antecedently served arsenic a idiosyncratic adjunct to erstwhile Rajasthan curate Shale Mohammad during the tenure of the Congress-led Ashok Gehlot government. Both men are from villages lone 8 km apart. Mohammad, a two-time legislator and furniture minister, has contested 4 authorities elections and is known to person affiliations with the 'Pir Pagara', a rubric held by the person of the Muslim Sufi bid of Hurs successful Pakistan's Sindh

Khan had visited Pakistan astatine slightest 7 times. His integer footprint showed deleted files and suspicious transactions. His connections are present being probed further by cardinal agencies.

The Digital Front: SIM Cards and Apps

In a abstracted case, Delhi Police arrested Kasim, a 34-year-old from Rajasthan's Deeg, for allegedly supplying Indian mobile SIM cards to PIOs. He had travelled to Pakistan doubly betwixt August 2024 and March 2025, staying for extended periods. According to the police, Kasim facilitated the amerciable export of Indian SIMs, which were past utilized by ISI operatives to interaction Indians and solicit subject information.

Kasim admitted to deleting each delicate information station the Pahalgam attack, fearing vulnerability aft nationwide arrests began. However, constabulary are conducting a forensic investigation of his devices a...