Uttar Pradesh ATS Arrests 11 Persons For Abetting Spying On Army Units
On the intervening night of Tuesday and Wednesday (24, 25 January), 11 people from different parts of Uttar Pradesh and the National Capital Region were arrested by the anti-terrorist squad of Uttar Pradesh Police (UP ATS) for abetting war against the country. The UP ATS acted on an input provided to them by the Jammu and Kashmir military intelligence unit two months ago.
The group allegedly helped callers based in Pakistan, Nepal, the United Arab Emirates and Bangladesh eavesdrop on military operations in Jammu and Kashmir, and ostensibly caused financial losses to the government through illegal activities in the telecommunications sector. The leader of the group has been identified as Gulshan Sen, a resident of Delhi's Mehrauli.
The Inspector General of ATS, Asim Arun, said:
Military officials posted in vital locations in Jammu and Kashmir were receiving calls from landline and mobile numbers. Identifying themselves as senior Army officers, the unidentified callers asked for specific information. Unsuspecting Army personnel shared the required information.
The investigators posted at the Jammu and Kashmir military intelligence unit suspected something was wrong, and dialled the numbers but didn't get through. The army then asked UP ATS to investigate the matter. During the investigation, it was found that targeted personnel received illegal Voice over Internet Protocol, or VoIP, traffic on their mobile phones, which is against the rules laid down by the telecom department.
The ATS got in touch with the Telecom Enforcement, Resource and Monitoring Cell, the technical arm of the telecom department, for assistance. The investigations revealed that Gulshan Sen in Delhi was providing technical support to the three parallel illegal telephone exchanges.
Three locations were searched on Tuesday night (24 January) in sector J Aliganj, Lucknow, Hardoi and Sitapur. An FIR has been lodged against the group, and charges amounting to waging war against the country and forgery are pressed against them.