ISLAMABAD – The Foreign Office (FO) on Thursday revealed details regarding the eight Indian diplomats in Pakistan who are allegedly members of the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) and Indian Intelligence Bureau (IB) and suspected of involvement in terrorist and subversive activities in Pakistan.
FO Spokesman Nafees Zakaria during a weekly press briefing in Islamabad said, “As you are aware, a number of Indian diplomats and staff belonging to Indian intelligence agencies RAW and IB have been found involved in coordinating terrorist and subversive activities in Pakistan under the garb of diplomatic assignments.”
The FO, providing details of the activities of the ‘undercover agents’, alleged that the suspected RAW and IB operatives also handled factions of the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), fueled sectarianism in Pakistan and created unrest in Balochistan, Sindh, and Gilgit-Baltistan (GB).
The names and designations of the suspected operatives provided by the FO are as follows:
Suspected RAW operatives
- Rajesh Kumar Agnihotir, commerical counselor and RAW station chief
- Anurag Singh, first commercial secretary
- Amerdeep Singh Bhatti, attache visa
- Dharmendra Sodhi, staff member
- Vijay Kumar Verma, staff
- Madhavan Nanda Kumar, staff
Suspected IB operatives
1.Balbir Singh, first secretary press and information, IB station chief
2.Jayabalan Senthil, assistant personnel welfare officer
The FO went on to claim that Indian High Commission official Surjeet Singh who was declared persona non-grata a few days ago was also an IB operative working under Balbir Singh, Dawn News reported.
“Surjeet was using a fake identity as Abdul Hafeez pretending to be a telecom company’s employee,” the FO alleged.
“We are disappointed that India has not only been found involved in promoting terrorist activities and terror financing as was disclosed by Kulbhushan Yadav, and further confirmed by the statements at the highest political level on Aug 15 and earlier during a visit to Dhaka. India has also been using its diplomatic mission for its nefarious designs,” the FO said.
Details of the alleged activities of the suspected RAW and IB operatives provided by the FO are as follows:
- Espionage, subversion, supporting of terrorist activities and fueling instability in Balochistan and Sindh, especially Karachi
- Sabotage of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor
- Creating unrest in GB
- Expanding network of operatives and agents under guise of commercial activities
- Leveraging positions as diplomats for ingress into influential circles for gathering inside information
- Damaging Pak-Afghan relations through a variety of activities
- Infiltrating Indian agents into social, media and political circles for propaganda purposes and activities detrimental to Pakistan’s interests
- Fabrication of evidence to portray Pakistan as a state sponsor of terrorism
- Handling factions of Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan
- Instigation of religious minorities
- Fueling sectarianism
- Maligning Pakistan with propaganda on human rights issues
- Activities in Azad Jammu and Kashmir detrimental to the Kashmir cause
- Misleading the international community about the indigenous movement for self-determination in held Kashmir
“India has violated diplomatic norms and the code of conduct for maintaining relations between two sovereign states,” the FO said, adding that India had violated the Vienna Convention by declaring Pakistan High Commission staffer in Delhi, Mehmood Akhter, persona non grata.
“They [India] are desperate to hide their crimes against humanity from the international community’s scrutiny,” the FO said.
“In desperation, they have turned their guns on innocent civilians across Line of Control.” spokesman added.
The FO also condemned the Indian atrocities in India-held Kashmir and India’s unprovoked ceasefire violations that, he said, have killed innocent civilians.
Defence analysts have expressed that the fresh revelation could further escalate the frayed relations between the armed neighbours. Recently India expelled a Pakistani HC staffer for being allegedly involved in espionage, however Pakistan gainsaid any such allegations.
This is not the first time, Pakistan has blamed Indian officials of involvement in destabilising Pakistan. In March, Pakistan arrested a RAW officer Kulbhushan Yadav.
The Indian Naval officer of the rank of Commander was reportedly working for Research and Analysis Wing. According to the sources, the Indian spy was in contact with Baloch separatists and other militant organisations.
Pakistan has repeatedly alleged that Indian spy agencies have been providing support to militants in Balochistan and different parts of the country.
