WhatsApp account, OTP and encrypted chats: Inside probe into alleged Pakistan-linked Navy espionage network

Vijayawada: A WhatsApp account, an OTP allegedly shared by a Navy employee, and encrypted communications with Pakistan-based intelligence operatives have emerged as key threads in an espionage investigation in Andhra Pradesh, with 18 people, including 13 naval personnel, under the scanner. 

The Andhra Pradesh Counter Intelligence Cell launched a coordinated operation, code-named ‘Operation Firewall-2026’, on October 1 as part of its probe into a suspected espionage network allegedly targeting sensitive defence information.

Twelve counter-intelligence teams were deployed across 10 states and Union territories, working with state anti-terrorism squads, naval officials and local police.

Investigators have arrested two people so far after finding prima facie evidence of their involvement.

They are Pradeep Mukherjee, a Navy employee attached to the Visakhapatnam naval base, and Annam Sai Varaprasad, a civilian contract driver engaged for naval officers in Visakhapatnam.

The investigation into the remaining suspects is continuing. The most unusual detail to emerge from the probe concerns Mukherjee.

According to the Andhra Pradesh Counter Intelligence Cell, he allegedly shared an OTP required to activate a WhatsApp account with a Pakistan Intelligence Operative (PIO).

Police also allege that he communicated with PIOs and shared sensitive information concerning naval and defense establishments.

Police arrested Mukherjee in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, where he was attending a training program. Police say they later brought him to Vijayawada on a transit warrant and remanded him to judicial custody until October 14.

Police arrested the second accused, Varaprasad, in Visakhapatnam. Police allege that he shared sensitive and classified information concerning naval and defense establishments with a Pakistan-based intelligence operative and received money in connection with the alleged exchange.

He was also remanded to judicial custody until October 14. The investigation is not limited to the two arrests. According to the Andhra Pradesh Police, the alleged module comprises 18 suspects, 13 of them naval personnel. During Operation Firewall-2026, investigators searched premises linked to the suspects and seized electronic devices for examination. Police are now examining their digital communications, financial transactions, and possible contacts with foreign intelligence operatives.

The operation covered Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Gujarat, Goa, Delhi, Tamil Nadu, Chhattisgarh and Bihar.

Investigators are examining the alleged collection and transmission of sensitive information relating to defense establishments and strategic locations, including those in and around Visakhapatnam, a key naval hub on India's eastern coast.

Police registered the case at the Counter Intelligence Police Station in Vijayawada on September 2. Police have invoked provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and the Official Secrets Act.

Officials have stressed that the investigation remains underway. While police have arrested two suspects after establishing what they described as a prima facie role, the allegations against the remaining 16 people, including the other naval personnel, are still being examined.

Authorities have also withheld further details about the alleged information exchange, citing the investigation's sensitive nature and national security concerns.

The probe therefore centers on more than the alleged sharing of defense information. Investigators are also trying to establish the extent of the suspected network, the nature of the information allegedly transmitted, the role of individual suspects, and whether further links to foreign intelligence operatives exist.