Srinagar: Arunachal Pradesh Police have arrested two residents of Jammu and Kashmir on allegations of collecting and transmitting sensitive information on military movements to handlers across the border, officials said on Thursday.
The first arrest was made on November 22 when police detained Nazir Ahmad Malik, a resident of Kupwara, from a rented accommodation in Ganga village near Itanagar.
The action followed intelligence inputs indicating that he was monitoring movement of Army and paramilitary units in the region, according to the FIR lodged at Chimpu police station.
Police said Malik was questioned soon after his detention, during which he reportedly admitted to passing details of troop deployment and locations of military installations through encrypted Telegram channels.
Investigators also recovered two mobile phones from him, which have been sent for forensic examination.
Based on information disclosed during the preliminary inquiry, police later arrested another Kupwara resident, Sabir Ahmed Mir, from the Abotani Colony area of the state capital.
A senior police officer said the arrests were made after agencies outside Arunachal Pradesh shared inputs pointing to possible coordination between the two men.
“The primary handler, who is suspected to be directing their activities from outside the state, has not yet been identified. Both accused have been sent to judicial custody,” the officer said.
According to the FIR, deleted data retrieved from Mir’s phone has added to the suspicion that he was part of a network engaged in sharing classified information.
Police said both men were in communication with individuals believed to be operating from across the border.
A preliminary assessment noted that the activities of the accused may have been linked to a broader plan aimed at compromising security installations and disturbing public order in the region.
The case has been registered under relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, the Official Secrets Act and applicable state laws. Further investigation is underway.(KNS).
