RETD ARMYMAN HELD ON CHARGES OF SHARING INFO WITH ISI
LUCKNOW : The UP Anti Terrorist Squad (ATS) on Friday arrested a retired armyman, Saurabh Sharma, a Hapur resident, from Lucknow for allegedly sharing classified information with Pakistan’s secret agency ISI. Sleuths also arrested one Anas Gatali, from Godhra (Gujarat), for transferring money to Sharma through different bank accounts, said Prashant Kumar, ADG, law and order.
Sharma was book under relevant sections of the Official Secrets Act and Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.
The ADG said Sharma had shared crucial details about the Indian Army with a woman, who was suspected to be Pakistan’s secret service officer. “Sharma used to get money from Anas Gatali on the direction of the woman, whenever he used to share information to her through WhatsApp,” he added.
Another ATS official said Sharma was spying for the ISI since 2014, after he came in contact with the woman through social media platform. He said the woman trapped Sharma through long online conversations and lured him into spying. The woman later gave him the offer of money in return for sharing crucial information about the Indian army, he
added.
He said the bank account of Sharma revealed that he had received funds from different bank accounts from across the country, including that of Anas Gatali. Some money transfers were even done from abroad and many times he received cash from unidentified persons after sharing information with the woman.
Sharma was arrested after being brought to the ATS headquarters in Lucknow for questioning while Anas was arrested from his house in Panchmahal locality of Godhra, Gujarat and will be brought to Lucknow after cops take his transit remand from a local court there, added the ADG.
He said Sharma had realised that he had been trapped by the ISI following which he took voluntarily retirement from the job a few months ago and wanted to get out of it. But even then, he was being asked to travel to different places of army base to collect information, he said.