West Bengal: In Bangaon, bordering Bangladesh, Special Task Force arrests suspected ISI operative

In Bangladesh's neighboring state of West Bengal, the Special Task Force (STF) apprehended a suspected Pakistani national on Wednesday morning near the border. Identified as Rana Rouf, the individual had been residing in India under the false name Wahab Alam, using counterfeit identification papers, according to the STF. The agency claims Rouf had longstanding ties with Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and engaged in espionage and terror activities.

Rouf, who hails from Faisalabad, Pakistan, entered India via Nepal in 2012 and later settled in West Bengal. Upon the search operation, law enforcement recovered sensitive materials, including images of various railway stations, train routes, and tracks throughout the nation, as well as documents pertaining to the Indian Army. The STF is currently tracing the recipients of these images to ascertain their identities and investigate whether any financial exchanges occurred for the obtained intelligence.

Furthermore, the agency is probing Rouf's connections in West Bengal and attempting to identify individuals who were scheduled to meet him at the border in Bangladesh. During interrogation, Rouf revealed that a carpenter from Kolkata's Topsia area had assisted him in obtaining false Indian documents, including a voter card and Aadhaar card, which they reportedly met in Nepal before Rouf's entry into India.

Following Rouf's confession, the STF arrested the carpenter, who is now being interrogated to uncover additional potential members of the network. Sources indicate that Rouf attempted to escape to Bangladesh after learning of the carpenter's arrest on terror-related suspicions. A tip-off prompted the STF to initiate a targeted search in Bongaon early Wednesday, leading to his capture.

Preliminary investigations suggest Rouf maintained ties with the ISI for several years, allegedly leaking confidential information about senior Indian officials. The arrest occurs amidst a series of high-profile operations by the state STF. Recently, police apprehended Hamim Mondal, a suspected Jaish-e-Mohammed associate, from a residential area in Burdwan for allegedly tracking Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari's movements.

This led to the arrests of Mondal's associate Arpita Sarkar in Jharkhand and Aditya Singh, a college student from Howrah, who was accused of supplying information to Mondal. STF stated that Rouf was not connected to Mondal. Meanwhile, Minister Agnimitra Paul remarked, "Our administration is addressing issues left by the previous government, which enabled illegal infiltration for electoral gains.

It will take time to completely dismantle these deep-rooted networks. Sleeper cells remain, and we urge all citizens to remain vigilant."