Navy Clerk Arrested for Spying for Pakistan, Leaked Operation Sindoor Details: Rajasthan Intelligence

A civilian employee working at the Indian Navy Headquarters in Delhi has been arrested by Rajasthan Police’s Intelligence Wing for allegedly leaking highly sensitive information to a Pakistani intelligence operative, officials confirmed on Wednesday.

The accused, Vishal Yadav, a resident of Punsika village in Haryana’s Rewari district, worked as an Upper Division Clerk (UDC) in the Directorate of Dockyard. He was apprehended under the Official Secrets Act, 1923, after weeks of surveillance by the Rajasthan CID (Intelligence), which had been tracking a possible espionage link connected to Pakistan.

According to authorities, Yadav had been in contact with a Pakistani female intelligence operative who posed online as “Priya Sharma.” She reportedly established a relationship with Yadav through social media and persuaded him to share classified naval information in exchange for payments routed through cryptocurrency and bank transfers.

Investigators stated that Yadav was financially vulnerable and addicted to online gaming, which was exploited by the foreign handler. He is accused of receiving funds through USDT (Tether), a stablecoin used in cryptocurrency transactions, and then leaking confidential documents related to India’s naval operations.

CID Security IG Vishnukant Gupta revealed that a forensic audit of Yadav’s mobile phone unearthed evidence of espionage. Chat logs, bank transactions, and internal naval files linked him directly to sensitive data leaks during “Operation Sindoor,” India’s recent military offensive targeting terror infrastructure in Pakistan and PoK.

Yadav is currently being questioned at a secure facility in Jaipur by a joint team of intelligence officials. Authorities are probing whether more individuals within the system were involved and are assessing the full scale of the breach.

Security agencies have issued an advisory to all citizens and personnel, warning against engaging with unknown contacts on social media and urging prompt reporting of suspicious digital behavior.

This arrest marks one of the most serious espionage-related breaches in recent years involving strategic defence operations. In past incidents, several similar honeytrap-based cases have emerged, highlighting vulnerabilities in digital communication and personnel vetting processes within sensitive government institutions.