Punjab: Pathankot man installs CCTV on highway to send Army's movement to Pakistan; arrested
The accused used to send the live feed to his operators in Pakistan and abroad. During the interrogation, he told the police that the CCTV was installed by him in January following directions from an unknown person in Dubai.
The Punjab Police has busted a spying racket and arrested a person from Pathankot for allegedly sending details regarding movements of the Indian Army and paramilitary forces to his Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) handlers, said officials.
The man has been identified as Baljit Singh, who is a resident of the Chakk Dhariwal village. According to the police, Singh installed a CCTV camera at a shop near a bridge on the National Highway (NH) 44 to track the movement of security forces.
Singh used to send the live feed to his operators in Pakistan and abroad. During the interrogation, he told the police that the CCTV was installed by him in January following directions from an unknown person in Dubai. For this, he was given Rs 40,000.
CCTV camera, WiFi router seized
The police have now recovered the CCTV camera and the WiFi router. Besides, a case been registered against Singh under Sections 61, 111, 113(3), and 152 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and Section 3 of the Official Secrets Act, 1923.
"Pathankot Police achieves a major breakthrough by busting a module linked to national security concerns. One accused has been arrested for installing a CCTV camera whose live feed was being shared with anti-national elements," the police said in a statement on X, adding that it remains committed to safeguarding national security and taking strict action against anti-national activities.
ISI module busted in Punjab
Last month, the Punjab Police busted a similar espionage module that was using China-made solar-powered CCTV cameras to transmit live feeds of sensitive military locations to Pakistan-based handlers.
One of the accused was identified as Sukhwinder Singh alias Sukha, who was resident of Ferozepur's Sahanke village. Apart from him, the police also arrested Sona and Sandeep Singh alias Sonu, both were residents of Ferozepur.
"These Chinese cameras are ideal for off-grid surveillance as they operate via 4G connectivity and solar power, bypassing the need for traditional wiring," Punjab Director General of Police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav had said.
ALSO READ - Pakistani officer mocked online after claiming strikes on two Indian airbases that don't exist