Pakistan High Commission Officials Charged for Espionage, Expelled

Government of India has expelled two officials of the Pakistan high commission after they were apprehended by law enforcement authorities on charges of engaging in espionage.

A senior officer from the special cell of Delhi Police, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said that altogether three officials of the Pakistani mission were detained at Bikanervala Chowk in Karol Bagh at 10.45 am on May 31, 2020 while allegedly trying to obtain classified materials on the Indian security establishment.

The officials said that the three men – identified as Abid Hussain Abid, 42, an assistant in the Pakistani mission, Mohammad Tahir Khan, 44, a clerk, and Javed Hussain, 36, a driver – had been under surveillance for the past few months. “They were caught red-handed while obtaining documents on the Indian security establishment from an Indian national and handing over cash and an iPhone to him”, said one of the officials cited above.

The three men initially claimed they were Indians and even produced fake Aadhar cards, the officials said. “Later, during interrogation, they confessed they were officials at the Pakistan high commission and worked for the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI)”, another officer said. A case was registered against them under the Official Secrets Act, the officials said. The detentions were the result of an operation jointly mounted by Delhi Police and Military Intelligence, they added. Consequently, the government ordered the expulsion of Abid and Khan, who both work for the visa section at the Pakistani mission. Abid had been posted in the mission since December 2018, while Khan was posted here in October 2015.

A statement issued by the external affairs ministry, without mentioning the names of those detained, said, “Two officials of the high commission of Pakistan in New Delhi were apprehended by Indian law enforcement authorities for indulging in espionage activities”.