Thane man held for providing sensitive information to Pakistani agent

The Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) has arrested a resident of neighbouring Thane for allegedly spying for Pakistan, a senior official said on Thursday, reported the PTI.

The accused, whose name was not disclosed, worked for an important organisation in Mumbai, and was “honey-trapped” by a Pakistani agent who posed as a woman and befriended him on Facebook, said the official, as per the PTI.

He was found to have shared sensitive information about a vital installation with the `Pakistan Intelligence Operative` through WhatsApp from November 2024 to March 2025, the official said.

Based on a tip-off, officials of the Thane unit of the ATS took the man in custody along with two others.

The man was arrested after preliminary interrogation under section 3 of the Official Secrets Act which deals with espionage, and section 61 (2) (criminal conspiracy) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. The other two were let off after an inquiry, according to the PTI.

Further probe was underway.

In a similar case, the ATS had last week arrested a contractual health worker posted in the border district of Kutch for allegedly sharing sensitive information about military establishments with a Pakistani spy, officials said on Saturday, according to the PTI.

Accused Sahdev Singh Gohil, 28, was allegedly lured by a Pakistani agent, who identified herself as Aditi Bharadwaj, to share information about under-construction as well as existing establishments of the Border Security Force and Indian Navy in the area, said the ATS in a release. Since June 2023, Gohil, a resident of Lakhpat taluka of Kutch, had shared photos and videos of various BSF and naval facilities in Kutch district via WhatsApp with the Pakistani spy for money, said Superintendent of Police (ATS) Siddharth Korukonda, as per the PTI.

The Pakistani agent first contacted Gohil, who was a contractual health worker at a government centre in Mata No Madh village in Lakhpat, on his WhatsApp number in June 2023. “After winning his trust, the agent sought photos and videos of BSF and Indian Navy offices and ongoing construction around his village. Gohil shared the requested classified information via WhatsApp,” said the SP, adding that Gohil knew she was a Pakistani spy.

In January 2025, Gohil used his Aadhaar to procure a SIM card and shared the OTP with the Pakistani agent, enabling her to use WhatsApp linked to that number from the neighbouring country. Based on a tip, he was brought to the ATS office a few days ago. “Forensic analysis revealed that both the numbers on which Gohil used to share the information are currently being operated from Pakistan. He had received Rs 40,000 cash from an unidentified person for sharing that information,” he said.

(with PTI inputs)

This article first appeared on Mid Day