Now Reading: Bengal STF probes how arrested Pak national got Fort William map
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Bengal STF probes how arrested Pak national got Fort William map
The West Bengal Special Task Force is investigating how a suspected Pakistani national, arrested on Tuesday, obtained a map and photographs of Fort William, the Indian Army’s Eastern Command headquarters in Kolkata.…
The Story in Brief
The West Bengal Special Task Force is investigating how a suspected Pakistani national, arrested on Tuesday, obtained a map and photographs of Fort William, the Indian Army’s Eastern Command headquarters in Kolkata. The STF arrested Rana Rauf Khalid alias Wahab Alam and his associate Mohammad Ijaz from Habra, North 24 Parganas, as they tried to reach the Bangladesh border via Jessore Road, a senior official said. The Times of India reports that Khalid, 36, had visited Kolkata at least six times since 2014-15 and had obtained a voter ID, PAN card and Aadhaar card using a false identity. The STF suspects ISI links and is examining deleted chats and phone numbers.
Investigators believe Khalid may have been gathering information on military movements near border areas, including Petrapole and Ghojadanga. He had enrolled as a voter but was struck off after failing to furnish citizenship details earlier this year. His associate Ijaz allegedly falsely presented Khalid as his brother to get the documents.
The Indian Opinion
The arrest feeds a familiar alarm: a Pakistani spy with fake documents, a map of a military base, and chatter about Independence Day. But the story also raises an uncomfortable question about domestic security, how easily Khalid obtained an Aadhaar and voter ID and stayed undetected for years. The test will be what the STF’s forensic examination of the deleted chats and phone numbers reveals. India’s spy panic often ends with more heat than light. This time, let the data show whether the threat was real or the system simply sloppy.
Sources (2): news.abplive.com, timesofindia.indiatimes.com
This story was synthesised by AI from the 2 sources linked above.
Updated: this story now draws on 2 sources.
