Noida: UP Police invoked the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act against the 21 members of a Pakistan-linked spying racket busted earlier this month, as fresh details emerged of a surveillance network that had planted hidden cameras at two major railway stations and was planning to install them at 50 more locations across the country.Police commissioner J Ravindra Goud said Sameer alias Shooter, a key organiser of the ragtag group of youths from across UP and Bihar arrested on Tuesday with two others, would moonlight as a utensil cleaner at a Chandni Chowk restaurant.Tasked by his Pakistan handlers with surveying security force bases, railway stations, and other strategic establishments and relaying information to foreign numbers, he had been planning to install a covert CCTV camera at Ambala railway station when he was arrested, the commissioner added.The men arrested since March 14 had already confessed to having installed solar-powered, SIM-based standalone CCTV cameras, deliberately mounted at a height of 20 feet on platform poles to capture the movement of trains across three to four platforms simultaneously, at Delhi Cantonment and Sonipat railway stations, with the live feed being shared with unidentified numbers, some traced to Pakistan.Police had since removed the cameras at Delhi Cantonment on March 14 and the one at Sonipat on March 18.CP Goud said Sameer had also built a recruitment pipeline by adding over 100 people to a WhatsApp group, promising payment for photographs and videos of prominent locations. The group was apparently sharing information with the handler coordinating the operation, Sardar alias Jora Singh, believed to be based in Pakistan.According to police, many members had eventually left the group, growing suspicious after payments did not materialise. Police are now verifying each of those individuals.During interrogation, police found that Sameer received funds from Sardar through a mule bank account, with money transferred via Jan Seva Kendras — govt-backed service centres providing people access to financial, healthcare, and welfare services. Investigators are now examining the account and its transactions.TOI had earlier reported that the money trail revealed a sophisticated laundering operation. Funds were routed from Pakistan to handlers in Nepal through hawala, then passed through casinos, businessmen, and mobile payment channels, with intermediaries taking a 20% cut before the remainder was transferred to Indian bank accounts or handed to operatives in cash.Police believe Sameer was running the operation on a shoestring budget. The messages exchanged with Sardar, which the police have so far accessed, show that Sameer would often ask for Rs 500 to Rs 1,000 to buy alcohol daily. Sardar frequently refused.Investigators also found that Sana Iram alias Mehak (25), a Kaushambi resident arrested earlier, had been in a relationship with Sardar. A few months ago, Sardar asked her to travel to Nepal to meet him, but she declined.FIRs were initially registered under sections 152 (acts endangering the sovereignty, unity, and integrity of India) and 61(2) (criminal conspiracy) of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and Sections 3 and 5 of the Official Secrets Act.Police have now invoked Section 18 of the UAPA, which covers conspiracy, abetment, and preparation for terrorist acts, against all 21 persons in custody. The section carries a minimum sentence of five years, extendable to life imprisonment, along with a fine.
