A man has been arrested in the Bharuch district of Gujarat for allegedly spying for the Pakistani intelligence agency ISI, police said on Thursday. The accused has been identified as Pravin Mishra, who, according to police, was honey-trapped by an ISI handler. Police said that Mishra divulged vital information related to drones manufactured by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO).
Addressing a press conference, Gujarat CID ADGP Rajkumar Pandian said, "CSL CID Crime mounted surveillance in a factory in Ankaleshwar near Bharuch, during which, we found a person called Pravin Mishra. His phone was checked, and based on the information we recovered from his phone, we filed a case against him under section 123 of the IPC, IT Act, and conspiracy offence.
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The main accused, an ISI handler from Pakistan, identified herself as Sonal Garg. She told him that she was working at IBM Chandigarh. She honey-trapped one Pravin Mishra. She got Pravin Sharma to extract India's defence-related information."
Pravin Mishra Sharing Information on Drones Manufactured by DRDO
The official further stated that many other people working for defence establishments have been targeted by ISI. "The honey-trappers target those working in or closely associated with defence establishments in the country. Pravin Mishra worked in Hyderabad in an organisation that, in turn, worked with DRDO. Pravin Mishra shared some vital information.
Apart from him, many other people working for defence establishments were also targeted. Pravin Mishra has been arrested. He has shared information on drones manufactured by the DRDO. The ISI handler even tried to install malware on Pravin Mishra's office server," he said. Further investigation is underway.