After Army Man And Vegetable Vendor, Scrap Dealer Held For Spying For ISI

A Delhi scrap dealer has been held in connection with an espionage racket, the police's Crime Branch said today. Last month, it had announced the arrest of an Army man from Agra and a vegetable supplier from Pokhran in this connection. The two were alleged to have spied on the Indian Army for Pakistan's Inter-Service Intelligence (ISI).

The person most recently arrested has been identified as Mohsin, operating out of Delhi's Turkman Gate area. He has allegedly travelled to Pakistan three times and was also said to be in touch with that country's High Commission in the city. He also acted as a visa agent for those travelling to Pakistan, sources said.

Mohsin allegedly used to send money to Naik Paramjit Dahia, a clerk at the Army's Agra Cantonment whose arrest was announced last month.

He would send the money, originally paid by ISI in exchange for sensitive defence-related documents, through Habibur Rahman, a vegetable supplier to the Army base camp in Pokhran, Rajasthan, police sources said. Rahman would then reportedly deposit it in the bank account of the sister of Naik Dahia who was earlier posted in Pokhran.

Rahman and Naik Dahia were arrested under the Official Secrets Act last month for allegedly providing classified documents to the ISI.

Mohsin's arrest is now being said to be the most important development in the investigation till now into the espionage ring.

In association with Rahman, he has been a key link for the ISI in the spying ring focused on the Indian Army over the past three years, police sources said.

The Crime Branch had earlier taken Rahman and Naik Dahia to Agra and Pokhran to investigate.