AI Generated Summary
- The accused, identified as Baljit Singh of Chakk Dhariwal village, is alleged to have installed an internet-enabled CCTV camera near a bridge on National Highway-44, a crucial route frequently used by Army and security convoys travelling towards Jammu and Kashmir.
- A man from Punjab’s Pathankot district has been arrested on charges of allegedly spying for Pakistan by transmitting live visuals of military and paramilitary movement along the strategically important Pathankot-Jammu highway, police officials said on Thursday.
- Police said further investigations are underway to trace the accused’s overseas connections and determine whether he was part of a larger cross-border espionage network operating in the region.
A man from Punjab’s Pathankot district has been arrested on charges of allegedly spying for Pakistan by transmitting live visuals of military and paramilitary movement along the strategically important Pathankot-Jammu highway, police officials said on Thursday.
The accused, identified as Baljit Singh of Chakk Dhariwal village, is alleged to have installed an internet-enabled CCTV camera near a bridge on National Highway-44, a crucial route frequently used by Army and security convoys travelling towards Jammu and Kashmir.
According to investigators, the surveillance system had reportedly been operational since January this year. Officials suspect that the live footage captured by the camera was being shared with handlers based in Pakistan, enabling them to monitor troop deployment and convoy movement in real time.
Police sources said the accused admitted during interrogation that he had acted on instructions routed through an unidentified contact based in Dubai. In exchange for setting up and operating the surveillance arrangement, he allegedly received ₹40,000.
Security agencies recovered the CCTV camera and associated electronic equipment during the operation.
The arrest has intensified concerns among intelligence and law enforcement agencies over the misuse of commercially available internet-connected devices for espionage activities in border regions.
Officials noted that the latest case bears similarities to recently uncovered spying networks allegedly linked to Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI). In those cases, investigators claimed that solar-powered, China-made CCTV cameras were being used to relay sensitive visuals of military installations and security movements across the border.
Following these developments, security agencies have stepped up monitoring efforts in Punjab’s border districts and along key military transit routes.
Police said further investigations are underway to trace the accused’s overseas connections and determine whether he was part of a larger cross-border espionage network operating in the region.
