Gujarat man held for sharing sensitive defence info with Pakistani spy: ATS

Ahmedabad: A 28-year-old contractual health worker from Gujarat’s Kutch district has been arrested by the Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) for allegedly leaking sensitive information about Border Security Force (BSF) and Indian Navy establishments to a Pakistani agent, officials said on Saturday.

The accused, Sahdevsinh Gohil, was reportedly in touch with a Pakistani operative who introduced herself as Aditi Bharadwaj and persuaded him to share visuals and details of defence installations in exchange for money, according to an official press release from the ATS.

Superintendent of Police (ATS) Siddharth Korukonda stated that Gohil, a resident of Lakhpat taluka, had been forwarding classified content via WhatsApp since June 2023. “After winning his trust, the agent sought photos and videos of BSF and Indian Navy offices and ongoing construction around his village. Gohil shared the requested classified information via WhatsApp,” Korukonda said.

At the time, Gohil was serving as a contractual health worker at a government health centre in Mata No Madh village. The Pakistani spy initially contacted him through WhatsApp and gradually built rapport before requesting details of existing and under-construction BSF and naval facilities.

Investigators discovered that in January 2025, Gohil used his Aadhaar credentials to obtain a new SIM card, subsequently sharing the OTP with the Pakistani agent. This allowed the operative to operate a WhatsApp account linked to that number from across the border.

“Forensic analysis revealed that both the numbers on which Gohil used to share the information are currently being operated from Pakistan. We also learnt that he had received Rs 40,000 cash from an unidentified person sometime ago for sharing that information,” said the SP.

The ATS acted on a specific intelligence input and summoned Gohil for questioning. His mobile phone was seized and subjected to forensic analysis, which confirmed the allegations, said officials.

Following further investigation, an FIR was registered against Gohil and the Pakistani agent under relevant Sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita — Section 61 (criminal conspiracy) and Section 148 (waging war against the government).