Post NIA alert, man detained in Madhya Pradesh over suspicion of links with Pakistan's ISI

INDORE: The Indore Police have detained a 40-year-old man, who stayed in China and Hong Kong between 2005 and 2018, on the suspicion of having links with Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) agency and terrorist organisations, an official said on Tuesday.

Madhya Pradesh Home Minister Narottam Mishra said the Indore Police apprehended the man, named Sarfaraz, following an input from the National Investigation Agency (NIA) and he was being questioned.

Indore's Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Rajat Saklecha, while refusing to name the suspect, said they had received an input from the Mumbai Police and the NIA that the man was suspected to be having links with the ISI and terrorist organisations.

The man was residing in Indore's Chandan Nagar police station limits, he said, adding the suspect was being questioned.

"This person has worked in China and Hong Kong between 2005 and 2018. During interrogation, the man in his defense said his case of divorce with a Chinese woman was underway in China and that her lawyer had made a false complaint against him to the Indian intelligence agencies," the official said.

The Indore Police were conducting an investigation pertaining to this person from all angles in coordination with all the central and state agencies concerned, he said.

The police have yet not reached any final conclusion about him, the official added.

While talking to reporters in Bhopal, MP Home Minister Mishra said the arrested person, Sarfaraz, was detained following the NIA's input. The entire matter is being investigated, he said.

"The rule of law prevails in Madhya Pradesh, which is an island of peace and no one involved in any suspicious activity will be spared," the minister said.

Earlier, officials had on Monday said the Mumbai Police were on alert and launched a search to trace a man "trained in Pakistan" after they were alerted by the NIA about his movement in the city.

"Mumbai Police are searching for a dangerous man after an e-mail was received from the city unit of NIA about his suspicious movements," an official had said.

The NIA communication identified the suspect as Sarfaraz Memon who has entered Mumbai, the official had said, adding that as Memon hailed from Madhya Pradesh, the police in that state were also alerted.

"While informing about the suspect, NIA officials also shared details like an Aadhaar card, a driving licence and a passport. As per information received, the suspect has received training in China, Hong Kong, and Pakistan," the police official had said.