Navy Clerk Arrested For Spying For Pakistan During Operation Sindoor

A staffer at the Indian Navy headquarters has been arrested on charges of espionage, allegedly leaking sensitive military information to Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), including during the recently concluded Operation Sindoor, according to an NDTV report.

The accused, identified as Vishal Yadav, a clerk stationed at the Navy HQ and a resident of Haryana, was apprehended by the Rajasthan Police's intelligence wing after months of surveillance. Officials allege Yadav was in direct contact with a female ISI handler who operated under the alias "Priya Sharma."

"Yadav was under close watch due to suspected links with Pakistani intelligence agencies," said senior police official Vishnukant Gupta. “Our monitoring revealed frequent communication with a female operative via social media, through which he shared classified information.”

Investigators claim that Yadav transmitted critical details related to Indian naval operations and defense installations in exchange for payments. The communication reportedly continued over several years and included intelligence shared during Operation Sindoor — a retaliatory strike by Indian forces on terror hubs in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir following the Pahalgam terror attack.

Forensic analysis of Yadav’s mobile phone revealed extensive communication records and data transfers. Authorities also discovered financial transactions, allegedly made through cryptocurrency wallets and direct bank transfers, which were used to compensate Yadav for the information he provided.

Sources told NDTV that Yadav was addicted to online gaming and had accumulated large debts, which may have made him vulnerable to recruitment by foreign agents.

He is currently being interrogated by multiple intelligence agencies at the Central Interrogation Centre in Jaipur. Investigators are working to determine the full extent of the breach and whether other individuals were involved in the spy network.

The arrest comes amid a broader national crackdown on suspected Pakistani espionage cells, which has intensified in the wake of the Pahalgam terror attack that left at least 26 civilians dead.