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New Indian Express
3 days ago
- General
- New Indian Express
Rajasthan government official arrested for spying, links to Pakistan ISI under probe
JAIPUR: A senior government official in Rajasthan has been arrested on charges of spying for Pakistan, in a case that has sent shockwaves through the state. Shakoor Khan, an Assistant Administrative Officer (AAO) posted in the Jaisalmer District Employment Office, was arrested under the Official Secrets Act, 1923, after weeks of surveillance and intelligence monitoring. Khan had earlier worked as a personal assistant to former Congress minister Saleh Mohammad, making the case politically sensitive. Police say Khan was in contact with several former officials of the Pakistan High Commission, including a man named Ehsan-ur-Raheem, also known as Danish. Investigations show Khan had links with multiple operatives connected to Pakistan's spy agency ISI. He reportedly met Danish several times at the Pakistan Embassy and was also in touch with another individual named Sohail Qamar. According to intelligence sources, Khan visited Pakistan seven times in recent years, with visa help from his contacts in the Pakistani embassy. He was in regular contact with at least 13 people linked to ISI through WhatsApp and other encrypted messaging apps. He is also accused of sharing sensitive information about Indian Army movements and helping send other people to Pakistan. Inspector General of CID-CB (Security), Vishnukant Gupta, said, 'He has been in contact with multiple Pakistani nationals through encrypted messaging apps. His phone revealed several unknown Pakistani numbers, which he failed to provide satisfactory explanations for.' Khan was presented in court on Tuesday and has been sent to police custody until June 10 for further questioning. Officials are also looking into his family connections in Pakistan's Sindh province, especially in places like Rahim Yar Khan, Sukkur, and Ghotki. The arrest has sparked a political controversy in Rajasthan. The BJP has targeted the Congress party over Khan's past links to former minister Saleh Mohammad. Congress has not yet issued a statement. Union Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat has demanded a full investigation. 'Anyone compromising national security must be punished, regardless of their political affiliations,' he said. The case has raised fresh concerns about internal security and the lack of proper background checks before appointing people to sensitive government posts.
New Indian Express
30-05-2025
- Politics
- New Indian Express
Former PA of ex-Congress minister detained in Rajasthan on suspicion of spying for Pakistan
JAIPUR: Security agencies on Wednesday detained Shakur Khan, a former personal assistant to ex-Congress minister Saleh Mohammad, from the Jaisalmer district of Rajasthan on serious charges of espionage and involvement in anti-national activities. He was taken into custody from the government office of the Employment Department, where he is currently posted. According to sources, Shakur Khan is accused of traveling to Pakistan multiple times without informing the authorities and allegedly engaging in activities that posed a threat to national security. Following his detention, he was brought to Jaipur, where a joint interrogation by central and state intelligence agencies is currently underway.
New Indian Express
28-04-2025
- Politics
- New Indian Express
Cross-border families crumble as tensions rise
JAIPUR: The heightened tension in India-Pakistan relations since the terror attack in Pahalgam has disrupted the lives of countless ordinary folk. Taking a tough stance, the Indian government has revoked the visas of Pakistani citizens and directed them to return to their country. This decision has shaken the lives of several Pakistani citizens and families who have recently come to Rajasthan, which shares the longest common border with Pakistan. Among the worst-hit is the love story of two youths from Jaisalmer, which flourished in Pakistan two years ago and culminated in their marriage but has now fallen prey to sudden orders from the government. Cousins Saleh Mohammad and Mushtaq Ali, residents of Devikot in Jaisalmer, went to meet their aunt in the Ghotki district of Sindh province of Pakistan in July 2023. There, they fell in love with two girls named Karam Khatun (21) and Sachul (22). The two couples entered wedlock in August 2023 with the families' consent. Despite the Nikah, the brides could not get a visa to India, but the grooms had to return in September 2023. After a wait of about one and a half years, the brides finally got their visas, came to Jaisalmer on April 11, and started living with their husbands and their families. Just 10 days later, the terror attack in Pahalgam shattered their new-found wedded bliss. With the Modi government ordering Pakistani citizens to leave India, the brides' father-in-law Haji Abdullah is now a worried man. He says, 'After the brides' arrival in India, we had applied for a long-term visa. But after the government order, police is pressuring us to send them back to Pakistan.' 'The administration is bent on sending the young brides back to Pakistan. How will these two go their in such tense times,' Abdullah wonders. A similar situation confronts a family of 18 from Tando Allahyar district of Pakistan who have come to Rajasthan's Barmer just last weekend. On Saturday, this Hindu family requested the government to let them stay in India.
Hindustan Times
27-04-2025
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
Pakistani brides' reunion with Indian husbands short-lived as India revokes visas
Barmer: After waiting for nearly two years, two young brides from Pakistan reunited with their Indian husbands in Rajasthan's Jaisalmer earlier this month. However, their hopes of starting a family were shattered when India announced on Thursday the revocation of all visas issued to Pakistani nationals, effective from April 27, following the Pahalgam terror attack on Tuesday. Cousins Saleh Mohammad (26) and Mushtaq Ali (27), from Devikot village in Jaisalmer, had travelled to Ghotki district in Sindh province in July 2023 to visit their relatives, where they met Karam Khatoon (21) and Sachul (22). The couples tied the knot in August 2023 in Ghotki, but the brides could not travel to India with their husbands due to visa complications. The grooms returned to India in September 2023, once their visas expired. After trying for a year and a half, the Indian government granted visas to the brides, and the families finally reunited on April 13. The families were busy celebrating the reunion with rituals when the visas issued to Pakistani nationals were revoked as part of punitive diplomatic measures over cross-border linkages to the Pahalgam terror attack that killed 26 people. Also read: India revokes visas for Pakistanis from April 27, medical visas get 2 more days The ministry of home affairs also issued a second order on the revocation of visas on Friday, stating that only two of the 16 categories of visas issued to Pakistani nationals—Long Term Visas (LTVs) and Diplomatic and Official Visas—will remain valid. The rest will be revoked with effect from April 27. Pakistani nationals in India on medical visas will be granted two more days, having to leave by April 29. 'How can we send them away now? If they leave, the doors will be closed forever, and our families will be destroyed. We request the Indian government to allow us to live together peacefully,' said Haji Abdullah, the father-in-law of one of the brides. Also Read:Pak woman, living in Odisha for 35 years, worried after 'Leave India' notice Abdullah said that the families had applied for Long Term Visas (LTVs) for both brides soon after their arrival. However, following the government's new directive, local police authorities have been pressuring the families to send the brides back to Pakistan. 'We waited for two years to be together. Now, just after a few days, we are being told to go back. Where would we go? Who is there for us in Pakistan? We would rather die than leave our husbands,' said one of the brides.
