Age old Pak spy trick lands J&K police officer in soup

It is an age old trick that the Pakistani spies play. Ironically they succeeded and managed to extract information from an officer in the Jammu and Kashmir police force.

The officer, Tanveer Ahmed, has been placed under suspension after he gave out information about the deployment of security forces in Kashmir.

On August 20, an intelligence official from Pakistan called Ahmed. He introduced himself as Major Sanjeev and sought information from the inspector about the deployment of security forces.

He further went on to ask about the deployment of the army at Baramulla and Kupwara districts.

Ahmed informed him that there were 12 companies that had been deployed. The Pakistani officer then went on to seek information about the deployment of forces at Handwara. This information was shared too.

The old trick that still works

This is an age old trick that Pakistan plays in a bid to seek out information. Immediately after the Hyderabad Dilsukhnagar blasts took place, one officer from Pakistan called the NSG office.

He posed as a senior Indian official and sought to know when the NSG would be moving to Hyderabad. The information was handed over to him.

There have also been several other incidents where Pakistani spies have called railway stations and sought information about the movement of the forces. The call is made to the station master who unsuspectingly hands out information.

This is a trick that is being played for long and officials say that in such times those taking the call must be cautious.

Each time such a call is received, the one answering the call must be cautious. Instead of immediately handing out information, he should say he will call back. He should intimate his senior who in turn would check with the army or any other security force concerned if such information was sought.

Some officials also say that this is easier said than done. The receiver of the call also would have at the back of his mind that he should upset a senior.

What if it is a genuine call? Senior officials also should put egos aside if they are told that their call would be returned. This is being done in the interest of national security and hence all must understand the risks, the senior intelligence bureau official also said.