India denies man is RAW agent
External Affairs Ministry denies the man arrested in Pakistan had any ties to the government.
islamabad — Pakistan summoned the Indian ambassador on Friday to protest against the illegal entry of an Indian spy who Pakistan said was captured in the violence-plagued province of Balochistan the previous day.
The accusation could raise tension between the nuclear-armed rivals months after India blamed Pakistan-based militants for an attack on an Indian air base in which seven military personnel were killed.
“(Pakistan) conveyed our protest and deep concern on the illegal entry into Pakistan by a RAW officer and his involvement in subversive activities in Balochistan and Karachi,” Pakistan’s foreign ministry said in a statement, referring to the message conveyed to India’s ambassador.
RAW is India’s Research and
The said individual has no link with government since his premature retirement from Indian Navy Vikas Swarup, Indian External
Affairs Ministry spokesman
Analysis Wing, its main external intelligence agency. “We arrested an officer of Indian intelligence agency RAW yesterday for his involvement in acts of terrorism,” a security official said.
Another official said the arrest was made in the southwestern Balochistan province. Both spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to speak to the media on the record.
Pakistan accuses India of supporting separatist elements in re- source-rich Balochistan and a political party based in Karachi. It also accuses India of fueling strife in Karachi and other cities. Balochistan’s Home Minister Mir Sarfaraz Bugti told reporters the arrest “proved Indian involvement” in his province.
Vikas Swarup, Indian External Affairs Ministry spokesman, confirmed Pakistan raised the issue with the Indian envoy but denied the arrested man had any ties to the government, saying he was retired from the navy.
“The said individual has no link with government since his premature retirement from Indian Navy,” Swarup said. “We have sought consular access to him. India has no interest in interfering in internal matters of any country and firmly believes that a stable and peaceful Pakistan is in the interest of all in the region.”