Intelligence agencies of Rajasthan Police have unearthed that ISI handlers have allegedly set up donation boxes at places of worship, and the collection from the devotees is used to fund terrorist activities in the villages located in the periphery of the state.
The sleuths discovered the funding network when they were interrogating ISI spy Deena Khan, who was arrested at Barmer last week. "Khan revealed that he was in charge of a small mazar in Chohtan village of Barmer district and distributed Rs 3.5 lakh of the mazar's donation to other spies like Satram Maheswari and his nephew Vinod Maheswari," a senior officer of the state intelligence and security wing told the Times of India. Deena's handlers in Pakistan would call him and ask him to distribute funds accordingly.
The officer said that Deena Khan distributed the amount among several spies, including Satram and Haji Khan. Earlier this year, the two were arrested by border intelligence personnel for sharing confidential information about movement of Indian troops along international borders. Since no record books were maintained by the Mazar authorities, Deena Khan secretly used part of the religious offerings to fund anti-national activities.
Cops suspect that ISI may have set up several such donation booths in the border areas to fund its undercover activities. "It is difficult to distribute money through hawala network as it can be traced. Hence, the donation boxes are easy way to collect money and distribute it among the spies," the officer was reported as saying.
Intelligence agencies are now keeping a keen eye over the sudden spike in places of worship that have sprung up at border villages. "The district superintendents of police have been directed to keep a close vigil at such places. With enhanced coordination and strategic planning, we have traced the network of foreign intelligence," deputy IG R Suhasaa said.
