In a major counter-espionage crackdown in Punjab, law enforcement authorities have busted a network accused of leaking sensitive strategic data across the border. The State Special Operation Cell (SSOC), Fazilka, arrested a woman hailing from Faridkot on charges of passing classified documents and sensitive details concerning Indian military establishments to Pakistan's intelligence agency ISI and the Pakistan Army. Along with the civilian operative, two active army soldiers have also been named in the First Information Report (FIR). Authorities have invoked Sections 3 and 4 of the Official Secrets Act, 1923, against all three suspects, identifying the woman as Gurnoor Sidhu, a resident of Harindra Nagar in Faridkot, alongside two serving soldiers.
The Espionage Pipeline: Cantonment Reconnaissance to Digital Transmission
According to the allegations outlined by investigators, the three accused had formed a close-knit nexus operating in direct coordination with Pakistan's intelligence apparatus and military handlers. The division of tasks within the ring was clear: the two implicated soldiers gathered confidential and highly critical operational details from military cantonments. Once compiled, these sensitive inputs were allegedly handed over to their civilian collaborator, Gurnoor Sidhu. Sidhu then used mobile phones and a tablet to transmit the strategic material across the border via the internet to handlers in the ISI and the Pakistan Army.
Security officials emphasized that these illicit actions posed severe risks to the country's national security, sovereignty, and territorial integrity. Investigators are currently focused on determining the exact nature and extent of the intelligence compromised, the specific digital channels and applications used for transferring files, and whether additional personnel inside or outside military installations were part of this information-sharing ring.
Field Operation and Interception in Firozpur
The operation unfolded on October 8, when an SSOC Fazilka team led by Station House Officer Inspector Satish Kumar was conducting surveillance and intelligence-gathering operations to track suspicious movements in the border belt. The team, which also included Sub-Inspector Prashant Kamboj and other personnel, was patrolling near the drain bridge close to Rukna Begu village in Firozpur district. At approximately 3:50 pm, a police informant provided a vital operational tip-off.
The source alerted the team that Gurnoor Sidhu was present in the vicinity of an under-construction bridge near the railway crossing on the Hussainiwala Border Road leading from Qila Chowk in Firozpur. The informant further warned that the woman was likely carrying the tablet and associated equipment used to transmit the classified information. Acting promptly on the intelligence, the police launched a coordinated trap and successfully apprehended her on the spot.
