Author: Narayan Bareth/Jaipur
Publication: The Pioneer
Date: January 24, 2002
Introduction: The Pak agency is
still engaged in cross-border terrorism. In fact, it has intensified activities
in the wake of India's recent troops movement
The Indian Army's build-up has encouraged
Pakistan to increase its espionage net across borders in Rajasthan. The
security agencies and Rajasthan police have unearthed a plot of Pakistan-backed
spies who are trying to penetrate the country.
In last two months, half a dozen
such elements were nabbed along the border area. The recent case being
the haul of an armed dump, including 25 kg RDX recovered from Jaisalmer-Barmer
districts.
The ISI also used name of Janes
Defence Weekly in hiring ex-Armymen. The police have arrested a Lashkar-A-Tayyeba
militant Ikram on Tuesday in Bikaner who was injured in November last while
crossing the border as BSF personnel had fired on him.
The injured militant was admitted
to Bikaner hospital and has been under treatment. After he recovered, the
Police arrested him for interrogation. Sources said, Ikarm and his associate
Ramzan entered India after cutting the border fence.
Pakistan's ISI is still engaged
in cross-border terrorism and espionage activities and it has intensified
with India's recent troops movement. The Barmer police have recovered an
arms and explosive cache which was meant to be used on Republic Day. But
the police have seized it before the militants could use it.
The police have arrested five persons
in this regard and investigation is going on. The seizer of explosives
proved that termination of STD/ISD services in border area helped in police
as Pakistan backed elements could not get directives from ISI to dispose
off the cache.
It is said that arrested persons
in this connection Zakia and Acharya had made one phone call abroad from
Barmer. The police is investigating as to how it was made possible when
overseas calls were banned in the border area.
The cache was supposed to be handed
over to some one on the directions of ISI. The explosives had been recovered
from field of one Magaram Meghwal nerar border in Jaisalmer district. The
police found 8 kg Rdx, 17 kg plastic explosives, AK 47 rifle, pistol magazine,
timer switch, detonator and wireless equipment.
The arrested persons are the residents
of Bhabooto Ke Dhani, a village near the border. In Bikaner, the police
arrested two brothers, Kamaluddin and Hassan and one Harjinder Singh, on
charges of spying for Pakistan's ISI. The arrested persons were passing
on secret documents, maps and information about vital defence installations.
One of them was Harjinder Singh
who was running a hotel or dhaba on Bikaner road and Kamaluddin from Jaisalmer
was working as servant on his hotel. Kamaluddin, who reportedly had earlier
been spying for the ISI, managed to get job in Harjinder's hotel.
Harjinder has contacts in the Army
and used it to gather information to pass on to Kamaluddin. Only last week,
one Tek Bahadur was caught in Suratgarh while sending information to Pakistan.
Hailing from Nepal, Bahadur served in Indian Army and had opted for retirement.
He was lured by ISI in Nepal on pretext of employing him for Janes Defence
Weekly. He revealed some startling information about ISI's operation through
Kathmandu. During interrogation, Bahadur revealed that he was attracted
by an advertisement published in local Nepali papers looking personnel
for the weekly.
The ad had said that preference
would be given to ex-servicemen. Bhadur became easy prey for the ISI net
through the advertisement. The arrests of these spies could be proved important
as Army's ammunition depots experienced massive fires at Suratgarh and
Bikaner.
