Kolkata: The Special Task Force (STF) has secured the names of five Nepal-based associates of Wahab Alam, the Pakistani national with ISI links who was arrested earlier this week from Habra in West Bengal’s North 24 Parganas district.
The STF sleuths secured the names of these five Nepal-based operators by cracking the netbook data that the investigating officers recovered from Alam’s possession.
Subsequently, during the marathon interrogation by the STF sleuths, Alam broke down and confessed the details of how he used these five Nepal-based operators to maintain his links with his ISI handlers in Pakistan, a source aware of the development said.
These five Nepal-based operators, whose names were recovered from Alam, were apparently responsible for overseeing the franchise business owned by Alam in Nepal. But, sources added that these five Nepal operators were the principal contact points between Alam and his ISI handlers in Pakistan.
“Precisely, to hoodwink police and intelligence agencies, Alam had established an indirect line of communication with his ISI handlers via Nepal. That is precisely why he used to go to Nepal frequently, after he first entered and settled in West Bengal in 2012, which was again via Nepal,” said an insider from the state police.
From the same netbook and subsequently from Alam’s confession, the STF sleuths have also secured the name of one more operator, Pavel, who is operating from Jessore in neighbouring Bangladesh.
The STF is trying to get details about these five Nepal-based operators and about Pavel from the respective governments in these two countries through the diplomatic channel of the Union Ministry of External Affairs.
The STF sleuths have also learnt that Alam, who was planning to escape to Bangladesh, was supposed to meet Pavel there.
Pavel, the Bangladesh contact, was to arrange a safehouse for Alam in that country for some time, update him on the new assignments in West Bengal and subsequently send him back to the state after a cooling period.
(IANS)
