An Indian Navy employee posted at the naval headquarters in Delhi has been arrested in Jaipur on charges of espionage, after allegedly leaking classified defence information — including sensitive details of Operation Sindoor — to a Pakistani handler posing as an Indian woman.
The arrested individual, identified as Vishal Yadav, an Upper Division Clerk (UDC) in the Directorate of Dockyard at the Navy building in Delhi, is accused of passing on strategic military data in exchange for payments totalling approximately Rs 2 lakh, some of which were reportedly made through cryptocurrency.
Operation Sindoor refers to a series of covert strikes carried out by the Indian Armed Forces inside Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, in response to the recent Pahalgam terror attack.
Inspector General of Police (CID-Security), Vishnu Kant Gupta, confirmed the arrest and said, “Yadav confessed to leaking multiple classified documents, including information related to Operation Sindoor, for which he received Rs 50,000.” He added that the accused had been lured into the espionage trap by a female Pakistani intelligence operative masquerading as an Indian woman.
Yadav, who hails from Punsika village in Rewari district of Haryana, was reportedly addicted to online gaming, a vulnerability investigators believe may have made him an easy target for manipulation by foreign operatives.
His arrest followed a coordinated surveillance operation, and forensic analysis of his phone has revealed incriminating evidence, including encrypted chats, financial transactions, and the digital transfer of sensitive material.
“This arrest is a result of sustained monitoring and timely action. Pakistan’s intelligence network is increasingly using sophisticated methods to lure vulnerable individuals. We are keeping a close watch,” IG Gupta said.
The investigation is now being handed over to a joint task force involving multiple agencies, and Yadav will be subject to further interrogation to determine the extent of the leak and identify any other collaborators.