marine
Mann
NEW DELHI: An Indian diplomat posted in Islamabad has been arrested here by Indian agencies for spying for Pakistan. The arrest of Madhuri Gupta, Second Secretary at the Indian High Commission in Pakistan, is probably the first of its kind in the Indian Foreign Service.And there are fears that some Research and Analysis (RAW) officials could also be involved in a wider spy ring.Gupta was allegedly passing on information that she got from RAW officials based in Islamabad. Sources said their links were also being investigated.Madhuri Gupta, 54, was summoned to Delhi three days back by the External Affairs Ministry on the pretext of discussions over SAARC summit in Thimpu. She was apparently assigned duties related to the summit.On Monday, the Special Branch of Delhi Police picked her up. She is being interrogated by a team of officials from Intelligence Bureau and RAW, Home Ministry sources said. “We have reason to believe that an official in the High Commission of India in Islamabad had been passing information to the Pakistani intelligence agencies,” the External Affairs Ministry said on Tuesday.“The matter is currently under investigation. The official is cooperating with our inquiries,” it added.Gupta, who is from Group B of the Indian Foreign Service, was promoted to the Second Secretary level, compared to direct recruits who begin their career just a shade below that.She was reportedly with the High Commission wing dealing with the press and is also an Urdu translator.The diplomat had been under surveillance for a few months.It is not clear what kind of information she might have passed on to Pakistani agencies.But the mere fact that the Pakistani agencies had a mole in the Indian High Commission has come as jolt in the Foreign Service.The arrest comes when India- Pakistan relations are going through a sensitive phase.Both Indian and Pakistani Prime Ministers might hold a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the SAARC summit in Thimpu.
