Kanyal fell into ISI’s honey trap: ATS official

LUCKNOW :Pakistan’s Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) dragged Ramesh Singh Kanyal, 43, into its network by honey trapping him. Thereafter, he was lured by being provided easy money in return of bugging the Indian diplomat’s house in Islamabad where he worked as a cook from 2015 to 2017, said a senior ATS official.

Kanyal, a resident of Kirola village in Pithoragarh district, was arrested from Didihat in Pithoragarh by UP Anti Terror Squad (ATS) sleuths on Wednesday for allegedly leaking crucial information to the ISI. The ATS officials brought Kanyal to Lucknow on Friday and sent him to jail after producing him before a local court.

During initial interrogation, Kanyal revealed that he was honey trapped by the ISI agents, said the official. The ISI agents honey trapped him after his initial reluctance to share information about the Indian diplomat.

“Kanyal told that the Indian diplomat had alerted him that the ISI agents will try to trap him for secret information. He initially kept distance from ISI agents who were approaching him regularly, but he finally fell into their honey

trap,” added the official.

He said the ISI agents often provided escort services to Kanyal in Islamabad, Pakistan. Moreover, Kanyal confessed to getting payment from the ISI agents in dollars for helping them access the diplomat’s house and crucial information, said the ATS official.

The official said Kanyal revealed that the ISI agents used to continuously chase him and remained present wherever the Indian diplomat moved in Pakistan.

The agents also frequently visited Kanyal in the absence of the Indian diplomat and got bugged all electronic equipment used by the Indian diplomat, he said.

Kanyal will be questioned on all these things and information leaked by him.

“We, however, have decided to first record Kanyal’s statement before the judicial magistrate as he is confessing to leaking crucial details to the ISI and many other facts,” stated the official.

After returning to India in September, 2017, Kanyal was recently assigned by the ISI to spy on military troop movement in UP and Uttarakhand and was in regular touch with them, he added.