Navy staffer arrested for spying for Pakistan during Operation Sindoor: Report

AN employee posted at the amerindic naval forces’s central office in new delhi has been arrested on charges of espionage, with investigators alleging that he was leaking raw defence information to Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) — including during the recently concluded Operation Sindoor.The accused, Vishal Yadav, a clerk at the Navy HQ and a resident of Haryana, was taken into custody by the intelligence wing of the Rajasthan police following months of surveillance, reported NDTV."The CID Intelligence unit of Rajasthan was constantly monitoring the espionage activities carried out by Pakistani intelligence agencies(ISI). During surveillance, they zeroed in on Yadav, who was in constant contact with a female handler of a Pakistani intelligence agency through social media,” the NDTV report quoted senior police officer Vishnukant Gupta.Yadav had reportedly shared confidential information related to naval operations and other defence establishments with a woman who identified herself as Priya Sharma, who was believed to be an ISI operative. Police said she paid him in return for sensitive information.According to the report, forensic examination of his cellphone revealed years of communication and data transfer, including during Operation Sindoor – a military operation by Indian on terror hubs in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir in response to the Pahalgam terror attack.Pakistan 'spy' was paid via crypto tradesInitial findings suggest Yadav was addicted to online gaming and had incurred significant financial losses. “He was receiving money via cryptocurrency trading accounts and also directly in his bank accounts,” the report quoted Gupta as saying.Multiple intelligence agencies are interrogating the accused at the Central Interrogation Centre in Jaipur. Officials are probing the extent of the breach and whether others may have been involved in the espionage network.Crackdown on Pak spy network intensifies after Pahalgam terror attackThe nationwide crackdown on suspected Pakistani espionage networks has gained momentum following the deadly terror attack in Pahalgam, which claimed over 26 civilian lives.In recent days, multiple individuals have been arrested across India for allegedly maintaining links with Pakistani intelligence operatives through social media and other channels.In Rajasthan, a state government employee identified as Shakur Khan was earlier detained in Jaisalmer on charges of spying for Pakistan.Separately, Haryana-based YouTuber and vlogger Jyoti Malhotra was taken into custody on similar espionage charges. Investigators claim she was in contact with a Pakistani officer posted at the Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi during Operation Sindoor — the intense four-day military confrontation between India and Pakistan from May 7 to 10.